Mati Fire Tragedy: Appeals Court Hears Testimony on Deadly 2018 Blaze

The Athens misdemeanours appellate court began hearing witness testimonies yesterday regarding the devastating fire in Mati on July 23, 2018, which claimed 104 lives.

The first witness, Jarosław Korzeniowski, a Polish citizen, recounted the harrowing loss of his wife and 9-year-old son. He last saw his family escaping Mati by boat, which later capsized. Their bodies were found at the port of Rafina. Korzeniowski revealed they had been swimming for hours before drowning, and he emphasised the absence of firefighters, police, and firefighting planes at the time, labelling the event a criminal act.

The second witness, Vassiliki Koukla, shared the tragic story of her elderly parents who perished due to the Fire Department's failure to respond. After searching for them in Rafina, she learned they were found burned in their kitchen. Koukla later discovered that the wrong body had been released by the Fire Department, leading her to involve a prosecutor to approve an exhumation.

The court is revisiting the case involving 21 defendants, including 15 officials previously acquitted on procedural grounds. The initial court had convicted six defendants, including five former top Fire Brigade officers and the individual responsible for starting the fire, but their sentences were reduced to five years each, with an option to buy out jail time.

This decision sparked public outrage, prompting a comprehensive reexamination of liability for all 21 defendants.

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