Aerial Firefighting Resumes in Greece as Fatalities Rise and Winds Subside
Greek authorities deployed eighteen aircraft on Monday to combat three major wildfire fronts west of Athens. The death toll from the recent surge in blazes has climbed to five following a mid-air helicopter collision.
Key takeaways
- Five people have died in the recent Greek wildfires, including two pilots killed in a helicopter collision near Psatha.
- Aerial firefighting resumed Monday with 18 aircraft after high winds previously grounded the fleet.
- More than 12,000 hectares of forest and agricultural land have been incinerated within a single week.
- Two utility workers were arrested in connection with a blaze suspected to have been caused by an electrical cable near Porto Germeno.
- The remaining fleet of leased Bell helicopters has been grounded following Sunday's fatal mid-air accident.
Operational Shift Amid Calmer Weather
Firefighting aircraft returned to Greek skies on Monday morning as wind speeds decreased, providing a tactical window for aerial suppression. Nine water-bombing planes and nine helicopters joined approximately 450 ground personnel to stabilize volatile fronts in Boeotia and Attica. Previously, gusts exceeding 80 kilometers per hour had forced the grounding of the fleet for safety reasons, allowing the flames to advance rapidly across parched terrain.
Deputy Minister for Civil Protection and Climate Crisis, Kostas Katsafados, characterized the ongoing efforts as an uneven struggle against the elements. The current emergency focuses on three primary locations between 45 and 70 kilometers west of Athens: Psatha, Kryo Pigadi, and Kandyli. Despite the resumption of flights, the Civil Protection agency issued fresh evacuation orders for villages near Kandyli as a precaution.
A Growing Human Toll
The intensity of the wildfires has resulted in five confirmed deaths since last week. Tragedy struck on Sunday near Psatha when two Bell helicopters, leased from Australia’s McDermott Aviation, collided during a mission. The incident claimed the lives of a Danish pilot and a Greek co-pilot. Two other crew members, a British pilot and a Greek co-pilot from the second aircraft, survived with injuries and are receiving hospital treatment. Following the crash, authorities grounded the remaining Bell helicopters in the 15-aircraft fleet pending a formal investigation.
These fatalities follow the deaths of three firefighters who died in the line of duty last week during operations in Crete and the Peloponnese. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has alerted the public to a period of extreme difficulty, citing the persistent combination of high temperatures and arid conditions.
Infrastructure and Legal Fallout
Data from the European Union’s Copernicus Earth observation program indicates that over 12,000 hectares of forest and farmland have been destroyed in seven days. While Mediterranean heat fuels the spread, human activity is also under scrutiny. Law enforcement officials arrested two employees of an electricity utility company on suspicion that a faulty electrical cable near Porto Germeno sparked a significant fire on Friday.
Regional fire danger remains at level four on a five-point scale for Attica and Boeotia. Officials note that while Greece had avoided the massive blazes seen in Spain and France earlier this season, the current two-week surge represents a significant escalation in wildfire activity linked to changing climate patterns.
Source: The Hindu — Sci-Tech
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