20 member of the Civil Protection Department have gone to Greece to provide assistance to the Greek Authorities putting out the fires that are taking hold across the country in this hot weather.

In comments from Malta International Airport, before these officials left for Greece, Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri and Civil Protection Department Director Peter Paul Coleiro, explained how this support is being provided just a few months after 32 other CPD officials had been sent to assist in the disaster left by the earthquake in Turkey.

Camilleri said that this is the first time that the CPD had sent a contingent outside our country to provide firefighting assistance. He said that this could only happen because in recent years these officers have been well trained and a strong investment has been made in the training and resources.

“Once again the Civil Protection are in solidarity with another country, where this time we had a request from the Greek Government and fulfilling the European mechanism,” the Minister said.

Camilleri added that “these officials will be fighting the wild fires, and apart from assisting, this experience will serve as training and experience for what we need in our country. Whilst they are in Greece, Malta has all the resources and personnel needed to continue assisting in any incident that may arise.”

Peter Paul Coleiro, said that since the beginning of this year, Greece has had 5,200 fires in the countryside, and 1250 hectares of countryside have been destroyed.

He explained that, “in this case, we received a request for direct help from the Greek Civil Protection, due to the fact that the Maltese firefighters are from the same region, they can work in the heat of the Mediterranean summer, as well as being used to putting out fires in the countryside which is very similar to that of Greece.”

“We could not remain passive to this call, to this request. We found immediate support from the Ministry, and thus a team of twenty firefighters will go out there for two weeks to work side by side with their Greek colleagues,” concluded Mr. Coleiro.

The CPD officials are expected to remain in Greece until the end of July.

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