Firefighting focused on rekindled wildfires in Gortynia, Evia
Small pockets of wildfires continue to burn in areas of the Ancient Olympia township, in Ilia, western Peloponnese, Deputy Regional Director of Ilia Vassilis Yannopoulos told state-run news agency ANA-MPA on Wednesday.
Firefighters are focused on a region among the communities of Lasdika, Milies and Kryoneri, “where one more ground team of firefighters is expected shortly.”
Another 30 firefighters from Austria were expected to arrive on Thursday.
In addition, firefighters and heavy machinery still remain at the administrative borders of Ilia and Arcadia prefectures to prevent the fire in Gortynia, the region east of Olympia, from spreading into Ilia. Specifically, they are posted at Xirokambos and Vassilaki in the Ancient Olympia township, and in the areas Sekoulas, Dafnoula and Alifira of the Andritsena-Krestena township.
“Although the danger of rekindlings in the fire fronts has not yet been alleviated, we are speeding up our efforts to register damages immediately,” Yiannopoulos said.
He expressed concern about the destruction of basins for overflow waters, especially ahead of the rain season. Forestry services should “move immediately to set up antiflooding works, to prevent soil erosion and to see that streams and antiflood banks at rivers, especially Alfios River, are not burdened more.”
Meanwhile, in Gortynia, strong ground and air teams continued to battle the rekindlings of fires and prevent them from reaching inhabited areas.
Rekindlings that blazed into fires are around the areas of Kalliani, Kastraki, Neochori, Pyrri and Livadaki. Deputy Regional Director of Arcadia Christos Lambropoulos told ANA-MPA that the wind velocity in the area has increased, and forecasts call for winds registering 5 on the Beaufort scale, “which is not good.”
Heavy machinery has been creating fire zones, as the concern is that the fire will reach Mt. Menalo.
Lambropoulos said that several residents of areas have returned to their homes and are trying to help fight the fires, both in inhabited areas and near the roads. Residents who have been evacuated from settlements are being hosted by the Gortynia township in hostels and in the Tropea region. “The region is in contact with Tripoli, to host them there if need be,” he said.
Another issue relates to animal feed, besides electricity and water problems, as there are farms in the area.
Fires also rekindled along the coast of northern Evia, from Agia Anna to Agriovotano on Wednesday.
Kamatriades has been the focus of firefighters from Greece and abroad since Tuesday, as the flames in a ravine threaten to spread to an oak forest called Telethrio. From there, the fire could spread to the coastal resort of Edipsos and Orei, further north.
Firefighters faced water pumping problems as several villages have lost electricity. A tanker arrived at the Psaropouli coast carrying water to fill water trucks so they could in turn fill fire trucks.
Hundreds of members of the Hellenic Army and Air Force arrived in the area around noon and are helping put out smaller pockets of fire.
[ANA-MPA]
