ATHENS (Reuters) -Firefighters battled on Monday to put out wildfires in three separate provinces of Turkey, in Greece and near a tourist resort in Albania, stoked by strong winds after days of searing heat across the Mediterranean region.

A politician in Turkey described the scene as "an apocalypse" as forests burned and more than 1,100 firefighters battled the flames. Meanwhile, in Greece, some suburbs of Athens have been evacuated.

Extreme heat, high winds and fires have plagued parts of Greece and Turkey as temperatures in Greece have risen to 111.2 degrees and in Turkey to 122.9 degrees.