'Serious' signs arson started deadliest wildfire in Europe

ATHENS - The Greek government said on Thursday that there were "serious" indications the fire in which most of the 82 people who perished in the nation's worst wildfires may have been started deliberately.

"A serious piece of information has led to us opening an investigation" into possible "criminal acts" behind the starting of the fire on Monday that ravaged the coastal region of Mati to the east of Athens, Deputy Citizen Protection Minister Nikos Toskas said.

He said the authorities were also examining whether another fire, which broke out hours earlier on Monday near Kineta to the west of the Greek capital, was "intentionally" lit. No one died in the Kineta fire.

"There are testimonies but I cannot say anything more now," Toskas added at a news conference in Athens, which was attended by government spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos, as well as fire and police chiefs.

Toskas also stressed that "climate conditions were extreme due to climate change".

Officials citing information from satellite maps said that 13 fires broke out at the same time across the region of Attica - which includes Athens - on Monday.

As relatives helped to identify the bodies of the dead on Thursday, anger has mounted over how the authorities could have let the disaster occur.

Government spokesman Tzanakopoulos sought to address the criticism, saying that "the evacuation of Mati was not possible because the phenomenon only lasted an hour and a half".

He added that the winds, which reached 120 km/h, were "the strongest recorded in the last eight years".

The government has also announced a raft of measures to compensate those affected by the fires.

Storm causes floods

Fires near populated areas in Greece are often blamed on arsonists believed to be targeting forest land for development, but arrests are rare.

An 82nd person was pronounced dead on Thursday by a fire service spokeswoman.

There was still no official word on the number of people missing after the catastrophe, but the death toll of 82 already makes this Europe's deadliest fire outbreak this century.

After waiting for rain to put out the fires, heavy downpours on Thursday afternoon caused flash floods that stranded dozens of motorists and damaged dozens of cars. But no one was hurt in the flooding, authorities said.

At least 200 calls were made to the fire brigade to help trapped drivers and pump water from flooded houses and shops, Greek national news agency AMNA reported.

At the same time, the image of dozens of overturned cars in an open parking lot in Maroussi made the rounds on local television channels and the internet.

The Defense Ministry said the army had been called in to remove debris and dig drainage channels to prevent flooding in the fire-ravaged area.

The region around Athens in November saw 16 people killed in flash floods.

AFP - AP - Xinhua

(China Daily 07/28/2018 page8)