ALEXANDROUPOLIS, Greece (AP) Firefighters scouring the area of a major wildfire in northeastern Greece burning out of control for a fourth day found the bodies of 18 people, authorities said Tuesday. They were examining whether the group might have been migrants who entered the country through the nearby border.

The discovery in the Avanta area of the city of Alexandroupolis came as hundreds of firefighters battled dozens of wildfires breaking out across the country, fanned by gale-force winds. On Monday, two people died and two firefighters were injured in separate fires in northern and central Greece.

With their hot, dry summers, southern European countries are particularly prone to wildfires. Another major blaze was burning across Tenerife in Spains Canary Islands for a week, although no injuries or damage to homes was reported from that blaze.

European Union officials have blamed climate change for the increasing frequency and intensity of wildfires in Europe , noting that 2022 was the second-worst year for wildfire damage on record after 2017.