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Greece Politicians Busy In Blame Games As Athens Burns

August 07, 2021 , , , , , , , , , , ,
By A Draft Correspondent 

"Unfortunately the worst is yet to come and the night ahead seems menacing. Tomorrow we expect strong western winds in many areas of our country," said Greece Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis as emergency services faced a difficult night ahead as wildfires in the north of Athens leaped back to life and westerly winds were set to strengthen. 

IN FLAMES: As temperatures soar in Greece, the wildfires have disrupted lives in the country (Image Source: Twitter)
In a special televised address, Mitsotakis urged people to comply with evacuation orders and avoid unnecessary travel. Authorities warned of more blazes on 6 august 2021 as temperatures hovered around 40 degree Celsius. A fourth day of raging wildfires in Greece witnessed thousands of Athenians evacuated from their homes as flames approached the Greek capital. With strong winds forecast expected to fan the fires. Neighboring North Macedonia, Albania, Bulgaria and Turkey are also battling fires. 

"Our country is facing an extremely critical situation," Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said, adding the country had to strengthen its preparedness for severe weather brought on by climate change. The government's response is being attacked by the opposition, which accuses it of mismanaging the disaster. 

Thousands of Athenians evacuated their houses overnight in the capital's northern suburbs as flareups regained strength on 5 August even as hundreds were evacuated by boat from Greece's second largest island of Evia, near Athens. A 38-year old man was killed by a falling electricity pylon in the Athenian suburb of Ippokrateios Politeia and nine others were being treated in hospital. 
Giorgos Tsouparniotis, the Mayor of Mantoudi, a town on Evia said, “Locals fought all night to save their fortunes, but in vain," adding that more than 300 houses and about 45,000 hectares have been destroyed. “The battle was unequal, the fire burned everything in its path. "In the evening we lived a nightmare, seeing people hanging from their roofs with the house already on fire and them not coming down ... Those people were fighting alone to save whatever they could,” he added. 

Six of Greece's 13 regions were placed on high alert on 6 August 2021 as firefighters battled more than 92 blazes. Forests are ablaze and hundreds of houses, cars and businesses have gone up in flames. Parts of the power grid have been damaged, and authorities are imposing power cuts to save energy.  

Helicopters and water bombers buzzed overhead; the military has also been brought in to fight the fires. Firefighters, planes and helicopters are already in the country or on the way from as far as Cyprus, France, Sweden, Romania, Switzerland and Israel. 

GUSH OF CONCERN: More than 300 houses and about 45,000 hectares have been destroyed (Image Source: Twitter)
And, with the fires still active, the political fallout has begun to grow. Opposition parties argue that the winds and heat wave aren't enough to explain why the fires are raging out of control. Local authorities in Evia and the Peloponnese are also complaining about a lack of resources to tackle the blazes. Mitsotakis, on his part, said the authorities are prioritizing saving lives and admitted that it is “simply impossible” to prevent damage to properties and forests, while also protecting people. “There will be time for criticism and self-criticism, but not now,” he said. 

Meanwhile, the government issued a decree prohibiting people from entering forests at least until 9 August 2021, with fines as high as €10,000. Justice Minister Kostas Tsiaras warned that arson will be treated as a felony and anyone convicted faces up to five years in prison. “The environmental damage caused by forest arson is for the first time explicitly standardized as a crime and the perpetrators will be punished with imprisonment,” he said. 

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