Greece Expands Firefighting Fleet Amid Crisis
Greece has delivered 164 new firefighting vehicles to the Fire Department as part of its largest-ever civil protection effort, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced on Friday. Speaking at a ceremony at OAKA, he emphasized that “Civil Protection is the face of the state when citizens need it most.”
With the fire season proving especially challenging due to the intensifying climate crisis, Mitsotakis noted that Greece now fields 18,000 firefighters, 1,800 foresters, 85 aircraft, over 80 drones, and nearly 4,000 vehicles. The newly added vehicles, worth €15.5 million, include all-terrain trucks and personnel carriers, and represent just a fraction of the 1,400 vehicles to be acquired through the €2 billion AEGIS programme, CE Report quotes Athens-Macedonia
Prevention remains key, the Prime Minister stressed, citing €400 million invested in forest clearing, firebreaks, and early interventions. Mitsotakis also called for stronger EU support, urging a broader European focus on civil protection, not just emissions targets.
The event was also addressed by European Commissioner Hadja Lahbib, Climate Crisis Minister Ioannis Kefalogiannis, and Deputy CEO of Growthfund Panagiotis Stampoulidis.
