As news of the grim and tragic fires in Greece over the past few days has shocked us, we can report that so far our village, Megali Mandinia in the southern Peloponnese has escaped these disasters. The local community is deeply saddened and angered by events elsewhere, but is safe and vigilant.

Theories about the cause of the fires abound, but we feel it’s a mix of arson, political incompetence and scheming plus disregard for the environment combined with an exceptionally dry winter, spring and hot summer. If you want to read more the BBC European news site has good coverage [search under Greece forest fires], including an article on the ecological impact, whilst the Athens News Agency  [you may need to refresh your browser to see the most up to date page] and Athens News [only updated on Thursdays] give a local perspective in English.

Apokrisi, the site that promotes Greek related events and venues in Britain, has details of a special fund that has been set up to help those affected in Greece.

Our hope is that those affected by the fires receive the support that they deserve and that Greece will rapidly put in place measures to respect and seriously care for its environment.