European firefighters start Greek summer mission
The first contingent of a total of 200 EU forest firefighters started their mission on Friday to assist the work of their Greek colleagues during the summer firefighting season.
The Romanian contingent, which was the first foreign unit to arrive, comprises 28 firefighters and five vehicles. The contingent will remain in Athens until the end of July. On August 1, they will be replaced by 25 French firefighters with four tenders and three auxiliary vehicles.
Other units, from Bulgaria, Germany, Norway, and Finland, will bebased in Larissa and Tripoli during July and August.
LIke the Romanians, French and Bulgarians will bring their own vehicles, while the Germans, Finns and Norwegians will bring equipment like pumps and hoses that can be fitted Greek tenders. The Norwegians will also bring a drone.
Each foreign unit will be assigned a Greek colleague who will act as a liaison.
The Bulgarian firefighting team, comprising 16 firefighters and four vehicles, will be based in Larissa during July.
The German group will arrive in Tripoli mid-July, where they will remain for two weeks, before being replaced by 14 Norwegian and 24 Finnish colleagues.
