“This winter has not helped. We had little humidity, little rain. We hope for a cool summer, but the forecast, unfortunately, is disappointing.”

OUR Sofia Karkali, Secretary General of the Attica Forest Fire Protection Volunteers Association (EDASA) concerned about the weather conditions that will prevail this summer. Memories of the 2021 fire in Parnit are still alive and no one wants to see or experience pictures of the disaster. There are many more people who volunteer to spend their days in the mountains trying to catch any spark that might endanger the national forest.

Every night, starting Friday, June 9, they will be – in shifts – in their place: At the wooden fire tower of Skipiz, at an altitude of 1270 meters, among the greenery. From here the view extends for 30 km, up to Aliveri and Dervenochoria.

“This is a very large area, and it takes a long time to scan it with binoculars, speck by speck, to find something. It happened several times that we gave micro-events, which, precisely because we perceived them at the beginning, did not develop. The effort is to report immediately so that the fire brigade can reach the scene within the first five minutes,” Ms. Karkali, who has been volunteering with EDASA in the field of forestry for the past five years, tells K. firefighting and protection of forest fires.

She herself brings up two children and works as an employee of the Athens National Technical University. Volunteering in the mountains, he says, is an important way out of everyday life, because in addition to the importance of giving back, there is also the precious satisfaction that communion with nature gives people.

“There were times when I was away from my children, disappeared for hours in the mountains. However, as they grew older, both my son and daughter realized how great and wonderful it is to contribute to nature. Now they are also participating in some kind of training and are waiting for the first opportunity to join the club, ”he tells K. “The point is to be able to pass on that germ to the next generation, because they are the ones who will get this environment and will have to manage it in such a way that it is sustainable for the next generation,” he adds.

“We need new volunteers”

After forest disasters, there is an increase in volunteer participation, but at least twice as much is required to cover the needs.

EDASA’s efforts to protect Mount Parnita have been going on for 36 years. Today, the club is attended by about a hundred people, women and men from 18 to 58 years old from different professional fields. Of these, 75% are actively involved in promotions. “These are students, engineers, university professors, the unemployed, workers, private employees, people who really feel the need to do something meaningful for the environment. By participating in the club, we actually educate active citizens, more conscious than before, and we are proud of this, ”says“ K ” Giorgos Mavrogeorgos, head of the Attica Forest Fire Volunteers Association which started as a volunteer in 2012. He notes that after forest disasters, there has been an increase in the participation of volunteers, but at least twice as much is needed to cover the needs. “I would like to encourage more people to come either to our own union or to other volunteer groups. The more of us, the better. With more fire protection positions, we can cover a greater range, and this is always desirable, ”he emphasizes.

39 year old worker Nionia Malefakis, he replied. Two years ago, he took part in the EDASA forest fire and forest fire safety training course for the first time and very quickly “dived” to the bottom. It was early August 2021 when a big fire broke out in Parnit and she ended up at the front working under firefighters. “All these days I was on the mountain. I experienced great sadness because the consequences of the fire were right in front of me for the first time. I saw how the trees were burning, and “the soul seized me.” But there was no time for sentimentality or reflection. At the time, I just listened to instructions and followed through,” he tells K.

“The fire united us, we all became one”

This experience was the reason Nyoniya bonded with the members of the club from the beginning, with whom she now performs night patrols and is on duty at Skipisa’s fire department. “The fire united us, we all became “one”. We fought with the “beast” for a common cause. Yes, the union and its actions are very important, but it is always the people who make the difference,” he tells us.

“In 2007, no one thought that the national forest could burn down”

And if a few decades ago no one assumed that Parnita could be destroyed, then everything changed in one summer. In late June 2007, after a prolonged heat wave, a fire that started in Derbenochoria and spread to the National Forest burned tens of thousands of acres of land, causing a huge environmental disaster.

“I know volunteers who have since been unable to climb the mountain again because they were psychologically affected by the pictures of the disaster,” says Mr. Mavrogeorgos. “Now, however, familiarity with the phenomenon has been established. There is concern that this may happen again. As scientific forecasts confirm, weather conditions – heat and drought, followed by periods of wind – contribute to the spread of fire.

“The point is not to get to the point that the fire department has to go through to put out the fire, but not to start one.”

OUR informing citizens in order to prevent this is what is needed to prevent the risk of fire, stress the EDASA volunteers. However, it is equally important to take appropriate action by the state. What has changed since last year? We ask them.

“Several activities were carried out to clear vegetation, as well as pruning trees, mainly near the roads, but also towards the forest. Some forest roads have been opened, and some of the pre-existing ones have been widened a little further to make it easier for fire trucks to reach,” says Ms Karkali, who still believes that no matter what action is taken, it will never will suffice if there is human negligence. “The thing is do not get to the point that the fire department will have to go through to put out the fireThe thing is, it won’t start.”