Athens’ southern suburbs have been devastated following last weekends fire that scorched through 432.2 hectares of land, mainly affecting the seaside suburbs of Glyfada, Voula and Vari.
According to a report by the EU’s Copernicus Emergency Management Service – Mapping on Tuesday (local time) using data collected by its satellite the damage is a significant ecological disaster.
The service was activated by Greece’s General Secretariat for Civil Protection planning and will be mapping out areas before and after wildfires, given that Greece often suffers from blazes during the summer months.
Following the great fire of Mount Hymettus back in 1974 the southern side of the mountain had been reforested as part of a 300 hectare project, however, the area has been burnt several times resulting in the low vegetation growth.
The fire brigade is still conducting assessments to damaged buildings and infrastructure while door-to-door checks are being carried out to ensure residents and animals are safe.
