Greece’s Citizen Protection Minister Nikos Toskas indicated at a press conference on Thursday that arsonists were likely behind the fires that killed more than 85 people.
"There is serious evidence pointing to a criminal action," said Toskas and added that
"from the first moment, the Prime Minister gave the order to investigate quickly and methodically all of the evidence and leave nothing unanswered”.
Transport and Infrastructure Minister Christos Spirtzis weighed into the issue amid accusations of poor infrastructure planning saying that the State did not delay in its response to the fires or make any mistakes “because on that day it had put all of its weight behind the large fire at Kineta, while at the same time there were also fires at Kalamo and Neo Voutza and the rest of Greece. If there were mistakes in the orders given, then this will be determined," said Spirtzis, adding that the mayors in these areas operated within their responsibilities.
On a day where there were so many strong winds, the question is why so many fires started in such a short time period, according to the Minister.
“Our critics are the same people who complained when we hired 2,500 people to protect the forests, he highlighted, adding "imagine if these hirings had not taken place"
On Thursday Spirtzis visited the areas in eastern Attica hit by the fires and described as fatal the anarchic construction and the zoning violations in Mati.
