The unsung heroes of the Evros fires
Using “traditional” methods of digging the earth, clearing branches and leaves and chopping tree trunks, dozens of residents from the Pomak villages of Petrolofos and Sidirochori, together with forest workers, managed to save 10,000 hectares of woodland by creating a 10-13-km-long containment zone during the devastating wildfires in Evros, northeastern Greece.
For seven days and nights, 60 people, divided into groups of 20-30, toiled under the guidance of two foresters and with the assistance of one or two fire engines to prevent the fire from spreading further into the Dadia forest.
The call for the “traditional way” was made by Alexandroupoli forester Giorgos Pistolas. “We took advantage of the wind and were at the tail of the fire, not at the head of it. We were trying to create a zone that would stop the fire,” he said. “They were cutting trees, reducing vegetation where needed, making the fire move where we wanted it to, and leading it to dirt so it could be put out. We were going step by step, it was a collective effort to save this part of the Evros,” he added.
