Cost of devastating wildfire disaster in Athens assessed by Greeks
Wildfire Ravages Rural Keratea, Southeast of Athens
A devastating wildfire tore through the rural region of Keratea, southeast of Athens, Greece in 2025, consuming approximately 4,000 acres of forest and grassland. The blaze, fuelled by strong winds, prolonged drought, and heat, was initially triggered by a malfunctioning medium-voltage power cable owned by the Hellenic Electricity Distribution Network Operator (DEDDIE), according to investigators from the Hellenic Fire Service’s Arson Crimes Division.
The fire started on a Friday afternoon, with two DEDDIE employees subsequently detained on suspicion of negligence related to network maintenance. Surveillance footage showed no vehicles near the site before the fire, further reducing the likelihood of human-caused ignition other than the power cable.
Firefighters with hoses were combing through a copse of trees to douse any embers and prevent reactivations. As they worked tirelessly, residents returned to gutted homes to retrieve belongings that survived the inferno. A 75-year-old man, whose name was not given, praised the work of the firemen and volunteers. His 71-year-old wife, Eleni, stated that "everybody did their utmost to save the area, but the real tragedy is that the forest is lost. It was very old."
Dimitria, another resident, lost her forest to the fire but her home was spared. She lamented about the lack of reinforcements from the fire brigade when the fire threatened many houses near the forest. Eleni pointed out that many trees were relatively unharmed due to the fire burning itself out quickly in the short grass that residents had cut in June.
The man, Kostas Triadis, observed the firefighters from his unscathed house. He described the forest as "a very good, small forest, we always knew it was dangerous." The contrast between the damaged landscape and the seemingly normal beachgoers ambling on the sand and swimming in the shimmering Mediterranean was stark. Beachside diners were greeted with the spectacle of water bombers skimming the water to refill and return to the raging fires.
Over 200 firefighters battled the fire in Keratea, with helicopters and water bombers flying low to drop water on fires and retrieve sea water. The fire threatened coastal resorts dotting the coast of Attica, but thankfully, no resorts were reported to have been affected.
The howling wind swept through a settlement on Saturday, a grim reminder of the destruction that had occurred. As the fire was brought under control, the community began to pick up the pieces, with the hope that the forest would regenerate and the memory of the tragedy would fade.
The incident raised concerns about the potential impacts of climate change on environmental science, particularly weather patterns and forests.
Despite the extensive damage, some residents attributed the relatively low number of destroyed homes to the maintenance practices in June, which left short grass that slowed the fire's spread.
