The no-fires season, during which the use of fire is banned in the countryside and in all open spaces, officially started yesterday, 15th April, throughout the island of Crete. The Fire Service will be increasing its patrols and offenders will be punished with steep fines and arrest.
Additionally, announcements yesterday by the Municipalities of Platanias and Kissamos reminded the owners, usufructuaries and tenants of building plots and other open areas which are inside approved urban planning areas and settlements that they must proceed with the clearing of their properties so as to avoid the risk of starting or causing the rapid spread of fire.
The announcements emphasise that the clearing and immediate removal of the remnants of clearance, as well as the maintenance of the said areas throughout the no-fires season, is the exclusive responsibility of the owners, to be carried out at their own expense. The disposal of such remnants in rubbish or recycling bins is strictly forbidden as is their abandonment or disposal in an unsupervised manner.
In the case of failure to undertake these obligations, as well as cases where municipalities have to carry out the clearing on their own account, the statutory administrative and criminal penalties will be automatically imposed on the building plot owners.
The owners of farmland fronting onto agricultural roads must proceed with cutting any branches which obstruct the free access of firefighting vehicles, while during the whole of the no-fires period any form of burning in forests, woodland, grassland and agricultural holdings is strictly forbidden.
(Haniotika Nea, 16/06/24)
Fire in Samaria Gorge
As a reminder of the ever-present possibility of fire even this early in the season, a fire broke out at midday on Saturday in woodland on Gigilos Peak just above the Samaria Gorge. Access was hampered by the remoteness of the area and the fire was not brought under control until Sunday morning. The major incident was attended by 40 firefighters in 14 vehicles, including two specialist teams of “forest commandos” and one disaster response team. A firefighting helicopter was also deployed, and by Sunday morning the site was judged to be safe with no further outbreaks expected. The cause of the fire has not been identified.
