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16 August 2024
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Major wildfire threatens Athens and surrounding villages and towns, Greece; two firefighters injured, one civilian killed
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On the afternoon of 11 August 2024, a wildfire fire hit the northeastern Attica region of Greece. The fire broke out in the area of Varnavas, northeast of Athens, at 15h02, according to Fire Colonel Vassileios Vathrakogiannis, the Fire Service spokesman and quickly spread due to strong winds. The flames caused the evacuation of many settlements and caused severe damage to homes and forest lands. The fire continued to burn, affecting significant parts of northeastern Attica and threatening the northern districts of Athens.
The fire spread southward and burned on three fronts, including the village of Grammatiko, the town of Marathon, the seaside municipality of Nea Makri and Mount Penteli.
Another fire in a forested area near the town of Megara, west of Athens, started on 11 August 2024 but had been contained by the afternoon of 12 August, according to the fire brigade.
Firefighting efforts
Early attempts involved 120 firefighters, nine ground teams, 23 vehicles, two planes and three helicopters. Residents were being evacuated toward Grammatiko and Kifisia.
Shortly after 18h00, 250 firefighters with 67 fire engines, were already fighting the fire on the ground, by water tankers from the regional administration and the armed forces. 12 planes and six helicopters were dousing the fires and one helicopter served to coordinate them.
On 12 August 2024, the forces deployed against the flames were increased to 560 firefighters, together with 16 teams of forest commandos and 177 vehicles, while 32 aircraft (17 airplanes and 15 helicopters) were operating from the air. The Hellenic Army was also been deployed to assist.
By 13 August, the wildfire no longer had a single front. According to the Fire Brigade, the firefighters had to deal with scattered pockets of fire from Varnavas to Nea Makri and Penteli, while there were constant rekindlings.
Civil Protection Minister Vassilis Kikilias stated that overall, a total of 702 firefighters were deployed, with 27 forest commando groups, 199 vehicles, while 17 aircraft and 18 helicopters operated periodically, three of which had a coordinating role. In total, Civil Protection sent evacuation messages to 45 areas of Attica.
International assistance
Other countries' contribution:
Impact and reaction
According to the Copernicus EMS Rapid Mapping Viewer, the fire fronts reached a total of 23.9 km (14.9 mi), while the fire burned 8 594.2 hectares (21 237 acres) of land, with 157.8 hectares (390 acres) accounting for land consisting of residential buildings. It was the first time that a wildfire that started around the Attica regi on, penetrated so deep within the residential core of the city of Athens, reaching the suburbs of Vrilissia and Chalandri.
A week after the fire, the Greek government announced a reforestation program for over 5 800 hectares throughout Attica. This covers previously burned areas of the last 15 years, which cannot naturally regenerate.
Casualties
One firefighter was injured while fighting the fire in the area of Marathon, suffering second degree burns to his hands and legs. He was first taken to the Nea Makri health centre and then to the 251 Air Force General Hospital.
Two fire trucks were engulfed in flames in the area of Neos Voutzas, where the fire is raging out of control. One firefighter suffered minor burns and the remaining three were in good health.
A hospital, a children's hospital and a military hospital, as well as at least two monasteries, were also evacuated.
Thirty-one people from areas of north-eastern Attica were transported to hospitals with respiratory problems.
In the early hours of 13 August, the charred body of a 62-year-old Moldovan woman was found inside the building of a local business, at the Patima neighbourhood of the Athenian suburb of Chalandri. She had been missing since noon of the previous day.
Besides Athens, Attica takes in the cities of Elefsina, Megara, Laurium, and Marathon, as well as a small part of the Peloponnese peninsula and the islands of Salamis, Aegina, Angistri, Poros, Hydra, Spetses, Kythira, and Antikythera.
Wildfires are frequent in Greece during its hot, dry summers, but authorities have said climate change is fuelling bigger and more frequent blazes. In 2018, a massive fire swept through the seaside town of Mati, east of Athens, trapping people in their homes and on roads as they tried to flee in their cars. More than 100 people died, including some who drowned trying to swim away from the flames.
Last year, wildfires in Greece killed more than 20 people, including 18 migrants who became trapped by the flames as they trekked through a forest in northeastern Greece and were caught by a massive fire that burned for more than two weeks.
Between January and May this year, the Greek fire service reported more than 3 500 forest fires, an increase of some 600 compared to the same period of last year.
The National Observatory of Athens reported that in June the total area burned in June 2024 was more than three times the 14-year average.
Sources: Associated Press, BBC News, Sky News, Deutche Welle, Michael Herrmann Michael, Balkan Insight
The fire spread southward and burned on three fronts, including the village of Grammatiko, the town of Marathon, the seaside municipality of Nea Makri and Mount Penteli.
Another fire in a forested area near the town of Megara, west of Athens, started on 11 August 2024 but had been contained by the afternoon of 12 August, according to the fire brigade.
Firefighting efforts
Early attempts involved 120 firefighters, nine ground teams, 23 vehicles, two planes and three helicopters. Residents were being evacuated toward Grammatiko and Kifisia.
Shortly after 18h00, 250 firefighters with 67 fire engines, were already fighting the fire on the ground, by water tankers from the regional administration and the armed forces. 12 planes and six helicopters were dousing the fires and one helicopter served to coordinate them.
On 12 August 2024, the forces deployed against the flames were increased to 560 firefighters, together with 16 teams of forest commandos and 177 vehicles, while 32 aircraft (17 airplanes and 15 helicopters) were operating from the air. The Hellenic Army was also been deployed to assist.
By 13 August, the wildfire no longer had a single front. According to the Fire Brigade, the firefighters had to deal with scattered pockets of fire from Varnavas to Nea Makri and Penteli, while there were constant rekindlings.
Civil Protection Minister Vassilis Kikilias stated that overall, a total of 702 firefighters were deployed, with 27 forest commando groups, 199 vehicles, while 17 aircraft and 18 helicopters operated periodically, three of which had a coordinating role. In total, Civil Protection sent evacuation messages to 45 areas of Attica.
International assistance
- On 12 August, the EU Civil Protection Mechanism was mobilized.[9] The following countries responded:
- Romania: 40 firefighters were deployed.
- France: One Eurocopter AS332 Super Puma is expected to arrive.
- Italy: Two Canadair firefighting aircraft are expected to arrive.
- Czech Republic: 75 firefighters and 25 firefighting vehicles, including nine water wagons, are expected to arrive.
- Cyprus is preparing to send a large team of firefighters.
- Spain offered help, with arrangements to be finalised.
Other countries' contribution:
- Moldova deployed its General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations (IGSU) in the region.
- Turkey offered to send two Air Tractor AT-802 firefighting aircraft.
Impact and reaction
According to the Copernicus EMS Rapid Mapping Viewer, the fire fronts reached a total of 23.9 km (14.9 mi), while the fire burned 8 594.2 hectares (21 237 acres) of land, with 157.8 hectares (390 acres) accounting for land consisting of residential buildings. It was the first time that a wildfire that started around the Attica regi on, penetrated so deep within the residential core of the city of Athens, reaching the suburbs of Vrilissia and Chalandri.
A week after the fire, the Greek government announced a reforestation program for over 5 800 hectares throughout Attica. This covers previously burned areas of the last 15 years, which cannot naturally regenerate.
Casualties
One firefighter was injured while fighting the fire in the area of Marathon, suffering second degree burns to his hands and legs. He was first taken to the Nea Makri health centre and then to the 251 Air Force General Hospital.
Two fire trucks were engulfed in flames in the area of Neos Voutzas, where the fire is raging out of control. One firefighter suffered minor burns and the remaining three were in good health.
A hospital, a children's hospital and a military hospital, as well as at least two monasteries, were also evacuated.
Thirty-one people from areas of north-eastern Attica were transported to hospitals with respiratory problems.
In the early hours of 13 August, the charred body of a 62-year-old Moldovan woman was found inside the building of a local business, at the Patima neighbourhood of the Athenian suburb of Chalandri. She had been missing since noon of the previous day.
Besides Athens, Attica takes in the cities of Elefsina, Megara, Laurium, and Marathon, as well as a small part of the Peloponnese peninsula and the islands of Salamis, Aegina, Angistri, Poros, Hydra, Spetses, Kythira, and Antikythera.
Wildfires are frequent in Greece during its hot, dry summers, but authorities have said climate change is fuelling bigger and more frequent blazes. In 2018, a massive fire swept through the seaside town of Mati, east of Athens, trapping people in their homes and on roads as they tried to flee in their cars. More than 100 people died, including some who drowned trying to swim away from the flames.
Last year, wildfires in Greece killed more than 20 people, including 18 migrants who became trapped by the flames as they trekked through a forest in northeastern Greece and were caught by a massive fire that burned for more than two weeks.
Between January and May this year, the Greek fire service reported more than 3 500 forest fires, an increase of some 600 compared to the same period of last year.
The National Observatory of Athens reported that in June the total area burned in June 2024 was more than three times the 14-year average.
Sources: Associated Press, BBC News, Sky News, Deutche Welle, Michael Herrmann Michael, Balkan Insight
