Greece: negligence is the main cause of fires

Fire at Partita 2007

This year, more than 100 person, including 10 – for arson with intent. However, the 70-year-old woman who caused a major fire in Ilya in 2007 through negligence did not spend an hour in prison, like most other arsonists, by the way.

The conditions favored the emergence and spread of fires, one spark was enough and …

At the foot of Mount Parnitha

On July 7, 2004, when the temperature reached 40°C and a strong wind of 7 on the Beaufort scale was blowing, a fire broke out at the foot of Mount Parnita. One person died, houses and cars were engulfed in flames. During the investigation into the cause of the fire, investigators from the fire department searched for incendiary devices for a long time to no avail. Power lines and transformer substations in the area were also examined almost under a microscope to detect a short circuit, but neither a break nor a melting of any overhead line wire was found. The cause of that catastrophe was hidden in something else.

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The fire department concluded that the cause of the fire was negligence of workers in new buildings. When installing the insulation, the workers, having secured themselves on the scaffolding, cut the iron bars with the help of a grinder. When using this tool, sparks were formed, from which dry grass ignited. The wind did the rest and the fire quickly got out of hand. This is not a story from the distant past.

Not only because, 18 years later, in June 2022, one aspect of this particular case was taken over by the Supreme Court, but also because negligence is one of the main causes in the fires that have since followed.

Yesterday, Minister of Justice Giorgos Floridis announced his intention to amend the Criminal Code so that arson through negligence is punished more severely. In this regard, the Minister of Civil Protection, Vassilis Kikilias, indicated that more severe penalties would be applied to violators.

This is what Pantita looked like in 2009, 2 years after the 2007 fire (15 years later, in 2023, this area looks almost the same). Then, about 25 thousand hectares burned out in the national park, which raised the average temperature in Athens by 2 degrees.

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Only numbers
So far in 2023, more than 100 people have been arrested for arson, ten of which are related to deliberate arson. In 2020, 313 people were charged with negligent arson and 55 with intentional arson, according to the Fire Department’s arson unit, which K has access to. In 2019, there were 133 accused of negligence, and 61 of intent. The same pattern was observed in previous years. It is significant that in 2016, 263 people were charged with negligent arson and 54 with intentional arson.

The two deadliest fires in Greece, in Ilia in 2007 and in East Attica in 2018, were caused by negligence.

Based on the totality of data for the period 2010-2015. found that 1850 people caused the fires by negligence, and 418 people acted deliberately. From the analysis of these data, it turned out that 26% of the criminals were farmers or livestock breeders, followed by 23% of pensioners.

Of all the 418 people accused of arson and then convicted, no one went to jail …

The two deadliest fires in Greece, in Elijah in 2007 and in East Attica in 2018, arose by negligence . In the first case, the fire broke out on August 24, 2007 from a house in the village of Paleochori. A 77-year-old woman was preparing a hut for a memorial service for her husband and left the dishes unattended next to the gas cylinder. There were also containers with 800 kg of oil and wine, as well as a second gas cylinder. The conditions for the outbreak of fire were favorable. Wind 5-6 points on the Beaufort scale, with gusts up to 7 points, air temperature 41°С.

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After that disaster, it took eight years for the Criminal Division of the Supreme Court to uphold the judgments of the Court of Appeal. The woman whose house started the fire, as well as representatives of the local authorities, were sentenced to a redemptive 10-year terms of imprisonment.

July 23, 2018, according to the relevant expertise, fire with more than 100 dead in Mati began with an open plot of land along Andrutsou Street, in the Dau Pentelis area. The local resident decided, despite the high hazard index of that day, to burn the dry grass. The criminal trial in the case in which he appears as a defendant continues.

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Investigations into the causes of the fire in Rhodes

Fire officer and expert Dimitris Liotsios is going to investigate what caused the multi-day fire in Rhodes. Mr. Liotios issued an opinion on the deadly fire on July 23, 2018 in Mati, pointing out the wrong actions of his superiors in terms of planning and operational part, the lack of communication between the departments involved in fire management, as well as inconsistencies and incorrect data that involved the parties presented to the court.

Fire on Rhodes broke out on July 18, 2023. According to the fire department, it was announced on November 19, while in the early days there was information that it started from a garbage dump, which has not yet been confirmed. The fire got out of control and raged for ten days, destroying large areas of forest and causing the successive evacuation of settlements and hotels. Residents and volunteers spoke to the media repeatedly of coordination problems, at least in the early days of the fire, before it made its way to tourist resorts such as Kiotari on July 22.

https://rua.gr/news/procrim/56713-predvaritelnoe-rassledovanie-prichin-pozhara-na-rodose.html

For several days there was still hope to hold back the sting, but as soon as the wind increased, within a few hours there were new large outbreaks that could no longer be contained.

The criminal aspect of major fires

• Parnita, July 7, 2004: the fire was caused by a worker cutting iron bars with a wheel in the building. In June 2022, one aspect of this particular case was taken up by the Supreme Court related to claims for damages.
• Elijah, August 24, 2007: A 77-year-old woman was cooking for her husband’s wake and left the dishes unattended next to the gas cylinder. Eight years later, the Supreme Court upheld the decision of the appeal court, which sentenced the 77-year-old woman and representatives of the local administration to corrective labor for a period of 10 years.
• East Attica, July 23, 2018: The deadly fire in Mati started in the Dau Penteli area due to the fault of a resident who decided to burn dry grass despite warnings. The trial in the criminal case, where he appears among the accused, continues (in this case, other causes of the fire are also considered, in particular, the negligent attitude of the power grid service to pruning trees in the area of ​​​​power lines. Editor’s note).

https://rua.gr/news/27108-tragediya-v-mati-pravda-i-lozh.html

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