Lycabettus Hill to be cleared of trash
Lycabettus Hill in central Athens has been closed off to cars since Monday and municipal authorities are scheduled to start clearing piles of garbage from several parts of the hill on Thursday.
The decision was taken by City Hall to prepare for the eventuality of a fire that could threaten Athens, following the deadly wildfires that ravaged parts of eastern and western Attica earlier this week, killing at least 81 people.
On Monday, the City of Athens had organized an preparedness exercise to coordinate its relevant services.
“I was particularly anxious about Lycabettus,” Giorgos Broulias, the deputy mayor responsible for garbage management who was recently appointed caretaker head for civil protection, told Kathimerini.
“This is why I had convened the municipality’s civil protection body last Wednesday.”
Two roads leading to the top of the hill were blocked and guarded by municipal police officers to stop vehicles from passing.
Broulias said cleaning crews would remove garbage from the ravine near the small cave church of Aghioi Isidoroi, as well as from an area where the homeless often camp.
