Kikilias: A hard battle now being fought on the fire fronts of Grammatiko and Kallitechnoupolis

"Since yesterday afternoon, the residents of northeastern Attica are being tested by an extremely dangerous fire, which we have been fighting for more than 20 hours in extremely difficult conditions due to the strong winds and extended drought and the very rough and inaccessible terrain in a dense, unburnt forest," the minister said.

"At this time, a hard battle is being fought on two fronts: one is the Kallitechnoupolis area and the other is the area of Grammatiko. There is an improved picture in Dionysos, Varnavas and Mikrochori," he added.

The minister said that 670 fire-fighters, 27 forest commando units, 183 vehicles and 32 aircraft (17 airplanes and 15 helicopters) were deployed to fight the fires, while wind speeds remained high at 7 Beaufort and were forecast to remain high for the next hours.

"I want to be clear. The response with both ground forces and aerial means to the original blaze in Varnavas was immediate. The first aircraft operated just five minutes after the start of the fire, as it was already in the air and patrolling with a full load, while the first ground forces arrived within the first seven minutes. Gradually and very swiftly, the forces were constantly reinforced, with the fire-fighting aircraft reaching 29 in total and the fire-fighters exceeding 500.

"Unfortunately, the forecast of the Risk Assessment Committee that placed Attica and other areas of Greece on red alert was confirmed. We will continue with all our forces until the fire is under control and the last flame put out," Kikilias said.