Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Minister Vassilis Kikilias appealed to people in an interview on Sunday during the programme "Ora Ellados" on the television network Open to be exceptionally careful not to start fires in the coming week, warning that it would be a very high-risk period for wildfires.
He stressed that most fires resulted from human actions and advised individuals and services, including local authorities, to show particular care.
"From tomorrow, Monday, we will have a lot of wind, the well-known 'meltemia' that according to the National Meteorological Service will reach seven, eight or even nine Beaufort in many parts of Greece," the minister warned.
"We are living in an era of the climate crisis, and we see this on Corfu, where last week we had a great wildfire in the north section of the island, and yesterday we had extreme weather phenomena with heavy rain and hail," he pointed out.
Unfortunately, Kikilias added, "human hands play a major role", and he announced the arrest of an 87-year-old man who was caught by police in the act of starting a fire using a flammable liquid, which the fire brigade was able to extinguish very quickly.
The minister also noted that "the state gives funds in good time each year for the clearing and fire protection of public spaces. In turn, local authorities must use every last euro of these funds. There must be timely clearing and also better and more effective checking."
Meanwhile, an 87-year-old man caught setting fire to dried grasses in the Athens suburb of Agios Stefanos was on Sunday arraigned on charges of intentional arson, after appearing before a public prosecutor. He is to remain in custody until he appears before a Three-Member Misdemeanours Court on Monday.
The 87-year-old was literally "caught in the act" at 1:30 on Sunday morning after a 39-year-old local resident called the police after spotting the suspect dousing dried grasses with a flammable liquid from a canister before lighting them.
A police patrol arrived within minutes, found the canister in his possession and immediately placed him under arrest.
Elsewhere, a wildfire broke out on Sunday in an inaccessible spot in the vicinity of Mount Olympus, at the localtion Bechtesi near the small village of Karya in Elassona. The fire brigade has responded, while volunteers are also assisting in efforts to put it out.
As the location where the fire started is hard to reach, a helicopter has joined the fire-fighting forces to drop water from above.
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