The Greek prosecutor's office brought charges against eight Kazakh citizens. This concerns the fire that broke out on June 21 on the island of Hydra near Athens. According to witnesses, fireworks were fired from a yacht chartered by foreign tourists.
The Kazakh citizens who chartered the yacht have already left the territory of Greece and therefore Athens has turned to Astana on their behalf, the eKathimerini portal reported on Thursday.
Earlier, the captain and first officer of the vessel were arrested in connection with the fire. The remaining eleven crew members, who were also charged, were released after being detained. The entire crew pleaded not guilty.
Fires in Greece
Sources told the Reuters news agency that there was insufficient evidence to link the yacht's crew to the case. The captain was the first to inform the services about the fire. The yacht on which the crew was working was anchored approximately 350 meters from the shore.
The fire on the picturesque Hydra broke out on Friday evening. Witnesses reported that fireworks were shot from one of the yachts. According to investigators, this was supposed to have caused a large forest fire to break out on the island. Its epicenter was far from inhabited towns and located in an area that was difficult to access. Volunteers also took part in the firefighting operation, which lasted until the morning hours. The fire consumed approximately 300,000 square meters of forest.
Greek authorities warn that this will be a very difficult summer in terms of fires. Due to high temperatures, little rainfall and strong winds, fire prevention measures began to be implemented at the earliest in history. Last year, the fire burned a total of 1,750 square kilometers of Greek territory.
Main image source: Εποχικοί Πυροσβέστες