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Tourists evacuated as wildfire destroys homes in Greek island of Lesbos
Tourists and residents have been evacuated from a popular resort on the Greek island of Lesbos as a wildfire destroyed homes in the beachside village of Vatera. The fire broke out at 10h00 local time on Saturday, 23 July 2022 and is blazing on two fronts, heading towards the Vrisa village and another inside Vatera. Fire fighters deployed seven aircraft and a helicopter to fight the surging blaze, with reinforcements expected to arrive from northern Greece. More than 450 tourists and residents, from two hotels and 92 houses, were moved out, while 60 officers scoured the area for those who refused to leave, local police said.
Greece’s fire service was fighting three other major blazes across the country but in Lesbos the danger was more acute. More than five hours after the first emergency call was made, the evacuation process was continuing, fire service spokesman Yannis Artopoios said. Fifty fire fighters used 17 fire engines, nine special aircraft and one helicopter to contain the blaze. West Lesbos Mayor Taxiarchis Verros ordered the evacuation of the busy beach resort as a precautionary measure, acting on the advice of the fire brigade. He said that there were several buses and small boats to take people away. At least two houses were ravaged by the fire. The biggest fire burning in the country is in the north-east, near the border with Τurkey and inside a national forest that is the home to rare species, such as vultures. The Dadia national forest is mostly made up of highly flammable pine trees. Officials said 320 fire fighters in 68 fire engines, plus six special aircraft, nine helicopters and many volunteers were fighting the inferno, while 200 lumberjacks were cutting firebreak paths through the forest. Two more major fires were burning in the area, one in a remote mountainous area in the Greek region of Western Macedonia and another in the southern Peloponnese, Artopoios said. Two Kamov-32 helicopters to aid fire fighting efforts Two Kamov-32 fire fighting helicopters arrived in Cyprus on Tuesday and are expected to operate in the coming weekend following a choppy procurement process and the signing of the leasing contract. The Russian build Kamovs are being leased from a Greek based company to the forestry department for a period of two years with a two-year extension option. Referring to a recent story by daily Politis regarding the procurement process and the obsession on behalf of authorities to lease these specific Russian helicopters, forestry department director Charalambos Alexandrou told the Cyprus news agency that there was never a specific preference on their behalf regarding these helicopters. “We set certain specifications with the most basic being the ability to carry at least three and a half tons of water and have a two-hour flight capacity in relation to their fuel reserve. From there on, the result was guided by the lowest bidder,” he said. Moreover, he added that the bid for the Kamovs was the lowest, that the forestry department had secured an approval from the finance ministry regarding the availability of funds and an approval by the public procurement authority regarding the validity of the tender documents. The two helicopters will be based and operate from Andreas Papandreou airport in Paphos along with the two Air Tractor aircraft already there. The Republic’s fleet will now be numbering eight primary fire fighting aircraft. “Last year we had six primary aircraft and we had set the goal of increasing them to eight. The goal is evidently being implemented,” Alexandrou told the Cyprus News Agency. Additionally, Alexandrou said that both the fire service and forestry department operate surveillance drones for fire prevention purposes in cooperation with the Cyprus institute. Speaking for the forestry department at least, he said that this is only temporary until their staff is trained to manage said drones themselves. The helicopters are expected to carry out their final airworthiness tests in line with the contract on Thursday and be placed at the forestry department’s disposal thereafter. This comes at a time when forest fires in Cyprus are peaking while the firefighting department is overworked and understaffed, according to firefighter’s association comments earlier this month. Worst wildfire disaster On Saturday, fire fighters were also battling for a third day a wildfire raging in the Dadia National Park, the country's largest Natura 2000 site known for its black vulture colony, in the northeastern region of Evros. The fire brigade said the thick smoke from the blaze prevented fire fighting aircraft from operating. A wildfire in mountains near Athens on Wednesday damaged homes and forced hundreds of people to evacuate after gale-force winds earlier this week. The country's worst wildfire disaster was in 2018 in the coastal suburb of Mati, claiming 102 lives, just a few kilometres from the area affected by Wednesday's blaze. On Saturday, a memorial service was held at the seaside town to commemorate the victims. A heatwave and wildfires last year destroyed 103 000 hectares (255 000 acres) and claimed three lives in Greece. Sources: TRT World, Athens News Agency, Cyprus News Agency |
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