Athens, Greece. Hundreds of firefighters continued battling a wildfire northwest of Athens for a fourth day on Monday, as strong and erratic winds drove flames through homes, pine forests and thousands of hectares of farmland and prompted evacuations by land and sea.
Two crew members of a firefighting helicopter died on Sunday after their aircraft crashed near the seaside community of Psatha following a mid-air brush with another helicopter.
Firefighting operation
More than 400 firefighters and 21 aircraft were deployed near Kandili and Agia Skepi on Monday. Thick black smoke and flames were reported in pine forests, while heavy machinery was being used to create fire breaks to prevent the blaze from reaching homes.
Deputy Climate Crisis Minister Kostas Katsafados told public broadcaster ERT that strong and erratic winds in recent days had prevented water bombers from collecting seawater, leaving ground forces to fight the fires.
Helicopter crash investigation
The crash occurred at low altitude near Psatha, about 40 kilometres from Athens. The two crew members aboard the second helicopter survived.
Authorities are investigating the cause of the collision. Aviation accident investigator Faidon Karaiosifidis said the formation of the two helicopters had not been appropriate, citing inadequate vertical and horizontal separation and descent rate.
Pressure on fire service
The wildfire follows three firefighter deaths in two separate incidents in Crete and the Peloponnese on July 29, after Greece’s fire season had previously been relatively mild by local standards.
Nikos Lavranos, head of the Federation of Unions of Fire Service Employees, said prolonged operations had placed pressure on a thinly staffed and ageing fire service, following a hiring freeze during Greece’s 2009-2018 debt crisis.
Residents near Psatha said that while vegetation had been cleared around homes, further work was needed to build and maintain fire breaks in forested areas.
