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As it happens for the last thirty years, every summer there is at least one out-of-control fire in Greece and the government has little idea of what is going on.

The wildfires broke out across Greece, and especially the Attica region, last Friday night. On Saturday we were awoken to a red-grey sky. We could see the fire coming closer, ashes were falling from the sky, it was getting darker and harder to breathe. Moreover, the usual craze on TV was anything but helpful.

The fire was coming too close, too fast. We were ordered to leave our houses. There was no time to pack or take anything with us. I only managed to change from my pyjamas to a pair of jeans and put on my shoes, grab my two already packed bags – since I’ve only arrived from London the night before and hadn’t unpacked – and run towards the screaming people (hard to miss).

We had four dogs to get, three of which are quite big. Someone was holding the Chihuahua, so we got the Doberman out and forced it into the car, because he was too scared and refused to get in. The other two dogs were staying next to the Doberman, but their door opens with a different key, which found the perfect time to break. My brother had to run and get another key and barely got them out in time, before the fire got them. We were then on our way to supposed safety: seven people and four dogs in four cars, two of which were low on gas. It was dark and foggy, people were panicking, many streets were closed and it was not easy to get around. The police was trying to redirect the cars with no success, making everyone impatient.

We found ourselves on a dark field away from the main road where our neighbours claimed it was safe. Safe? We are in the middle of nowhere next to an uncontainable fire. At an area we were supposed to evacuate! The fire was beyond close and we could see it destroying everything on its way while people screamed and cried and refused to abandon their houses. Can’t blame them. It’s way too hard to stand powerless and watch everything you have worked for, your property, your entire life, being reduced to ash so fast and without any mercy.

Everyone spoke at once:

“This is our place we are not leaving.” “We are burning!” “Why did we stop here?” “Are you ok?” “I’m fine.” “Is our house burning? DO something!” “What can I do?” “I need my medication. Who has my bag?” “Are the dogs with us?” “Where’s the donkey?” “Donkey? What donkey??!” “Where the hell are we?” “The car’s run out of gas!” “What’s the police saying?” “You have your meds with you? Do you have sedatives for your mother?” “What’s the government doing?” “Whose place is this?” “Our house is burning!” “Are we moving?” “No, I’m not scared, I just don’t understand why we are standing here watching the fire coming closer and closer!”

My brother’s godfather said that we were way too close and they were all crazy and he would rather been labelled as a coward than burn alive. My brother and I grabbed the dogs and followed him. The Chihuahua was barely breathing and the Doberman threw up in the back of the car. We left the dogs at friends and relatives and spent the night at a hotel. Many people were fighting the flames till 5:30 in the morning and many more continued after that.

At noon we checked out of our hotel and despite being in the centre of Athens we could still smell the fire and see the ashes flying around. The police had closed the streets and wouldn’t let us go home. Last we’ve heard the fire was two metres away from our house. Do we still have a house? What’s going on? Nobody knew much. Speculation, fear, panic. The fires kept spreading everywhere, more areas were evacuated and more people were getting desperate. There was no improvement. Just more disaster. We spend two days moving hotels, talking on the phone and watching the news. “Is that our street on TV?” Isn’t that the place next to us?” “Why isn’t someone helping these people?” “What’s the government doing?”

The dogs have never been so quiet. They were not eating and kept shaking. Poor things. We were covered in ashes, dog hair, saliva and vomit and have inhaled enough smoke for two lifetimes.

Sunday night my brother, the Chihuahua and me, moved to another hotel, after driving around the hotel for more than half an hour finding nothing but one-way streets and dead ends. This country! Dammit! Where are we supposed to go? Is the dog still alive? Hey, it’s vibrating! What? Don’t worry my love, we’ll be at the hotel soon and we’ll feed you. You are safe, don’t be scared.

My brother had no clothes with him and I had no toiletries and had to ask the hotel staff for some. Normally, we would go out and buy a few basic things, but Sundays everything is closed all day long.

On Monday the fires have receded significantly, although the situation remained critical in certain areas. The police opened most streets and we were on our way to our house, after stopping to pick up the Doberman. (Someone else had picked up the other two dogs.) The Chihuahua had entered the ‘vibrator mode’ and was shaking uncontrollably. The Doberman, which was sitting on the back seats, threw up five times and produced enough saliva to drown himself. They told us on the phone that the fire had reached our house, but the damage was minimal and the inside of the house was pretty much ok. So we drove through burnt trees and cars and we were finally home in one piece. Lucky us, but so many people weren’t lucky at all…

BBC articles:

Greece claims wildfire victory

Wildfires break out across Greece

Tags: greece, greek fires, life stories

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 25th, 2009 at 16:50 and is filed under LiveJournal post, life stories. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.