Greece is ramping up its firefighting efforts, with authorities betting on a host of preventive measures - from the deployment of firefighting aircraft to increased staffing in specialized forest firefighting units - as temperatures touched 30 degrees Celsius in late March and wildfires already broke out weeks earlier than expected. On top of multi-agency exercises and drills, Greece is also fast-tracking a 2.1 billion euro program to upgrade its fleet of firefighting aircraft and create an AI-driven sensor network to detect smoke in the early stages of a fire. Derek Gatopoulos, a correspondent for the Associated Press who has been covering news in Greece for more than 25 years, joins Thanos Davelis to look at the steps Greece is taking to prepare ahead of this summer’s wildfire season.
You can read the articles we discuss on our podcast here:
As fire season fast approaches, Greece’s planners look for an edge in response time
Greek authorities overhaul wildfire response plans ahead of summer fire season