Romanian firefighters stationed in Greece fighting to extinguish extensive wildfires

Romanian firefighters on a mission in Greece have been facing strong wildfires and forest fires since Monday, August 12, near the locality of Kapandriti.

The intervention is extremely difficult due to high temperatures, dense smoke, and strong winds. The IGSU (General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations) specified that one firefighter suffered superficial facial injuries but did not require treatment. None of the Romanian rescuers needed medical care.

“Due to a gust of wind, one of our colleagues suffered superficial facial injuries, but did not require detailed investigations or specialized treatment,” stated the IGSU cited by News.ro. The firefighter is currently intervening alongside his colleagues in the firefighting mission.

The Romanian firefighters in Greece intervened with all the technical means allocated to this mission on Monday: three forest fire trucks, a large-capacity fire truck (10,000 liters of water), and a 30,000-liter water tanker.

“Our colleagues’ intervention consists of protecting inhabited areas and extinguishing fires affecting dry vegetation and forests,” IGSU noted in a press release cited by Digi24.

Greece has been facing severe fires in the last few days, with authorities requesting EU assistance to extinguish fires near the capital, Athens. Smoke covered parts of the city on Monday, and temperatures of 39°C and wind gusts of over 50 kilometers per hour were expected in the region, according to meteorological services.

Four EU member states have announced that they are sending aid—Romania, Italy, France, and the Czech Republic. Romania had sent 40 firefighters to Greece at the end of July in anticipation of wildfires. 80 others were sent to France at the end of June.

France announced that as of Monday, it is sending 180 firefighters and rescuers from the Civil Security, 55 vehicles, and a helicopter, which is already in transit. This deployment is taking place within the framework of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, established in 2001. In total, 670 firefighters and 183 vehicles have been deployed on the outskirts of Athens, and 32 aircraft were flying over the area, according to Greek Minister of Civil Protection, Vassilis Kikilias.