Even before summer arrives, two major wildfires have ravaged approximately ten kilometers of vegetation, threatening villages and industries.
One occurred in the area of Asgatas due to mishandling of explosives, and the other near the industrial area of Agios Silas, for reasons yet unknown.
Apart from these two wildfires, smaller ones keep breaking out, with firefighters rushing to evacuate flooded areas and roads on one hand, and extinguish fires on the other.
The problem is not new. Cyprus, due to its dry climate, has always been vulnerable to wildfires. Especially today, with rising temperatures exacerbating conditions.
Despite the need for fortification against this danger long ago, year after year, we gamble with fate. Citizens have been contributing a portion of their meagre interest income on deposits for defense for decades, billions have been spent so far, poking a hole in the water, yet we have failed to acquire aerial firefighting assets.
We keep buying, keep renting, but the issue remains unresolved. And when flames engulf us, we expect assistance from neighbouring countries. At this moment, after the first major wildfire, we requested help from Jordan.
Two firefighting helicopters and 18 firefighters arrived in Cyprus, but before they could familiarize themselves with the terrain, a second wildfire erupted, fueled by winds, threatening homes and industrial assets.
One day it’s Solea burning, firefighters dying, and… That was 2016. About twenty square kilometers charred, and two forestry firefighters dead.
The next day, it’s the mountainous region of Larnaca burning, along with four foreign workers, and again… That was 2021.
And here we are in 2024, with only one firefighting helicopter and many ‘what ifs,’ which we hope won’t remain unanswered this time.
What’s finally happening in this place? It takes six years to make a square, seventeen years for a road, and tens of millions are allocated for marinas for developments that we haven’t seen, while public spaces are being held captive.
No major project progresses, and those that do see their costs doubling. We pray not to flood, not to burn, not to thirst, not to die from hospital infections if we survive cancer…
And God only knows what to anticipate. This is not a state. It’s a state of neglect.
