A civil protection state of emergency has been declared on the island of Chios due to the wildfires that have burned on the island since the day before, Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Minister Yiannis Kefalogiannis announced on Monday.
"A few minutes ago, the general secretary [of civil protection] officially declared a state of emergency on the island so that the municipality can immediately proceed with the actions that are required," the minister said.
Kefalogiannis, who flew to Chios on Monday, was monitoring the fire from the "Olympos" mobile operations centre coordinating the fire-fighting effort. He was accompanied by the General Secretary for Civil Protection Nikos Papaefstathiou and New Democracy MP Notis Mitarakis. He noted that the situation remains difficult due to the constant outbreaks of new blazes and rekindlings in difficult climatic conditions.
The minister reported that 190 firefighters, including 11 forest commando units and 38 fire engines, were currently deployed on the island against flames, with another 170 fire fighters and 30 vehicles expected to arrive as reinforcements within the day. "Also operating are 13 helicopters and four Canadair [fire-fighting aircraft] during the day, both yesterday and today, and these forces will constantly be increased as needed," he added.
Kefalogiannis said that the authorities were concerned but also troubled by the fact that various new fronts were erupting in geographically unrelated parts of the island, where they could not be justified, adding that this was under investigation and he promised that further updates will be released following a meeting of the coordinating body.
Asked whether any person had been held, he said that no such information could be given at this time, though more might be said later.