We regret to advise you that a Fire Chief has been killed in the Line of Duty while operating at a forest fire in southern Greece. 49-year-old Gythio Fire Chief Konstantinos Kastris died in the southern Peloponnese today. Chief Kastris is the first Firefighter in Greece to have died in the Line of Duty since major fires ravaged southern and central Greece in 2007, killing 76 people, including 9 Firefighters. This fire, in the eastern Mani area broke out earlier today, and was being fought by 20 firefighters, a team of soldiers, four water-dropping aircraft and eight vehicles. Like parts of the United States, Greece suffers destructive forest fires every summer, although this year the damage so far has been comparatively small. Our sincere condolences.
