Ever since the European Forest Fire Information System began recording wildfires in the EU (since the year 2000), the ongoing Greek fires have shown to be the deadliest and most destructive of its time. These wildfires in Greece have destroyed roughly 200,000+ acres of land and counting. The tragic fires have been burning since August 19, 2023. They originated in Alexandropoulos, a city located in the Evros region, but the blazing has been so unforgiving its now reached the border of Turkey and expanded into its regions. So far, 20 people have died, 75 people total have been injured, & thousands of people were forced to evacuate their homes.
In hopeful news, Greece has been fortunate enough to receive assistance from a multitude of other European countries: Germany, Sweden, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, France, Spain, Romania, Bulgaria, Albania, Slovakia, & Serbia have all delivered hundreds of firefighters & some aircraft in a trying attempt to quiet the mass destruction of its land. Top EU official, Janez Lenarcic, who specializes in crisis management, says that this has been the largest & fastest collective firefighting action in the EU bloc. 475 firefighters, 100 vehicles, & 10 aircraft are deployed and currently battling 87 raging infernos.
There is speculation as to what in particular started the fires, some say that it may have been lightning, while on the other hand, 79 people have been arrested under suspicion of arson. Despite the tragedy of these fires, Greece is known for its wildfire prevention regulations, as fire department officials have arrested 163 people on account of fire-related charges since the beginning of fire prevention season. The Prime Minister, Kriakos Mitsotakis, chaired a governmental meeting for a plan of action on responding to the devastation. Greece will not rest until these wildfires are out and until the burnt forests have been rehabilitated.
