Military and police rescuers show that authorities knew of victims but kept silent

According to their testimonies, they had identified the first dead  before it was dark on Monday, that is, prior to the briefing of the Prime Minister, at the Fire Brigade Operations Center, just before midnight.

Although on the basis of what the head of the OYK and the commander of the Police Special Guards they had informed ministers responsible that human lives had already been lost on the fiery front, however, during the briefing to Alexis Tsipras they said nothing about the dead.

In fact, at this meeting, the head of the Fire Brigade and the Minister of Citizen Protection told the Prime Minister that the front was in recession. Still, what was said in front of the cameras during the briefing was that some houses had been burned and that there were some people trapped on beaches, with those responsible practically describing a mythical picture, while in reality everything had already been destroyed in Mati and there were dozens of dead people.

Mr. Baltakos, head of the 40 men of the OYK Team, who attempted to visit Mati beach, told SKAI that his team had identified the first dead before it was dark on Monday and informed the ministry. The same was emphasized by the commanders of the Special Guards, who said that police officers of the DIAS team had spotted the first dead one in the afternoon.

"The spectacle was unworldly. Hundreds of people in the sea, others in devastated psychological condition on the beach, some left their homes even though they were burned, others were looking for their people ... And dozens of people had lost their lives on the road to the harbor, "said Mr Baltakos, describing what he tragically experienced with his colleagues at Mati.

He reported that his team had been notified at 6:30 in the afternoon that they were trapped persons in the bays of Mati and started from Agios Cosmas. He added that the first dead were soon spotted and informed the military and political leadership of the ministry. Indeed, he reportedly found that they had spotted the first dead long before night.

Mr. Baltakos pointed out that the OYK Team saved and transported 465 people to the port of Rafina and the Coast Guard more than 700.

On the other hand, the general secretary of the Special Guard Association, Stratos Mavroidakos, stressed that the police officers of the DIAS squad had spotted the first dead from the fire at 19:40 on Monday afternoon. He appreciated that if this became known by radio, the Head of Police would also  have been informed.