"We’re facing nan ambiance situation caput on," says Greece's curate for ambiance situation and civilian protection.
Greece’s occurrence play officially starts successful May, but dozens of fires person already been put retired complete nan past period aft temperatures began hitting 30 degrees Celsius successful precocious March - considerably higher than erstwhile spikes recorded complete nan past decade.
“It’s really already summertime for us,” said Fire Lieutenant Colonel Ioannis Kolovos during a caller training exercise. “The truth is that nan occurrence play has started prematurely and has been extended complete nan past 5 years.”
His 10-member elite occurrence unit from nan 1st Wildfire Special Operation Unit bristles pinch devices needed to clasp backmost fires: chainsaws, specialised rakes, upwind gauges, machine tablets and earth-scorching drip torches to pain wildfire barriers into nan hillside.
This year, Greece is doubling nan number of firefighters successful specialised units to immoderate 1,300, and adopting strategies from nan United States to effort and outflank fires pinch airborne units scrambled to build breaks successful nan predicted way of nan flames.
Specialised devices overtake h2o arsenic nan main limb against fire
Crew members see forestry experts and firefighters pinch varied skills, galore developed successful training pinch colleagues successful France, Spain and nan United States.
“We tin position ourselves successful optimal locations that whitethorn beryllium difficult to scope by ft and transportation retired occurrence suppression utilizing various specialised methods,” Firefighter Dimitris 'Jim' Priftis said while assisting trainees successful a region adjacent nan superior ravaged by wildfires successful summertime 2023.
“Using h2o is nary longer our main limb against fires, it’s our tools,” he said. “We are taking a much technological attack toward fires, measuring nan humidity, nan upwind - it’s a much planned method.”
Mostly funded by nan European Union, Greece has launched a €2.1 cardinal programme to overhaul its disaster consequence capability, ordering caller water-dropping aircraft, drones, occurrence trucks, training facilities, and an artificial intelligence-driven sensor web to observe early signs of fume and flooding.
But nan caller instrumentality won’t commencement arriving until 2025. Greek authorities are doubling down connected training and caller firefighting methods, pinch different reliable play expected this year.
Greece faces a worsening yearly wildfire challenge
Fires burned an estimated 1,750 quadrate kilometres past year, including a blaze successful bluish Greece that was nan worst fire ever recorded successful nan European Union.
Windy and mountainous pinch hard-to-reach islands, Greece faces a daunting yearly situation successful defending aggregate municipality settlements that overlap pinch wooded areas astatine wildfire risk.
It’s besides getting hotter: past wintertime was nan warmest since modern records began successful 1960, according to nan National Observatory of Athens, which analysed European Union outer data. The six warmest Greek winters connected grounds person occurred successful nan past decade.
That’s against nan backdrop of caller information revealing that Europe is nan world’s fastest-warming continent, its temperatures rising astatine astir doubly nan world average.
Standing successful nan main disaster consequence bid centre successful Athens, Vassilis Kikilias, nan curate for ambiance situation and civilian protection, says authorities expect yearly conditions to worsen further.
“It will beryllium a very difficult occurrence season, a very difficult summer,” says Kikilias. “We had a barren wintertime and autumn temperatures lasting until December. So we’re facing nan climate crisis caput on.”
How is Greece preparing for this year's occurrence season?
Throughout nan period of April, firefighters stepped up exercises and training, utilizing caller accommodation for illustration nan Fire Dragon, a €1.2 cardinal trailer utilized to simulate nan wrong of a burning building. Fire crews pinch dense protective cogwheel and oxygen tanks usage it to believe close-quarter techniques and rescues.
Close by, Fire Service regulars and trainees crawl done a mesh maze successful acheronian to believe moving successful confined spaces. Participants successful afloat kit first workout connected treadmill climbers and different gym machines, past crawl done nan maze arsenic strobe lights, fume and large noises are added to disorient them.
“The firefighting maze helps firefighters successful a acheronian environment, successful an unfamiliar setting, successful nan beingness of fire, to participate nan area, investigate, perchance transportation retired a rescue and find a measurement out,” said Fire Lt. Col. Vrasidas Grafakos, a training centre commander.
“It’s to train them efficaciously to beryllium fresh for building fires, for front-line activity.”
Retiree Chrysoula Renieri was among those who mislaid their homes successful nan 2023 fires that tore done forests connected nan land of Rhodes, successful northeastern Greece, and areas westbound of Athens.
Renieri visited her gutted house past week. As she walked done nan blackened rooms, she described really her family felt helpless arsenic nan approaching occurrence trim disconnected powerfulness and nan h2o proviso earlier nan flames took complete nan house. “No 1 helped america and everything burned. It’s each gone.”
She said she hopes nan Fire Service’s caller instrumentality and methods mightiness make a quality to others.
“I wish that would happen, truthful galore homes could beryllium saved,” she said. “We hope, because summertime is coming again and nan torment will begin.”
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