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MATI, GREECE – Firefighters in Greece raised to 91 the number of victims of a fire that ravaged a coastal area east of Athens and reported that 25 people were missing Sunday, six days after the deadliest fire in Europe.
Before the National Fire Service updated the official number of casualties, it rose to 86, while hundreds of people attended a memorial service Sunday morning for the victims of the most seaside village. hard hit by the flames. The fire ravaged the village of Mati, a popular resort, without warning on July 23. A database of the Center for Research on Disaster Epidemiology in Brussels shows it as the deadliest in Europe since 1900. [19659002ThevastmajorityofthevictimsweremortagedinthelungsandsomedarknesswasimpartedinthefirefightingrangeInspiteofthelackofauthoritytheGreekauthoritiesdidnothavetogiveupanyofthelostpapers
Stavroula Malliri, spokesman for Hellenic Fire Service, explained why the death toll has continued to rise and the list of missing persons
Malliri said that on Sunday evening, 59 victims were identified on bodies or remains and that four other people injured in the fire had died in hospitals in the area. But identities have not yet been linked to 28 other remains, she said.
Relatives or friends reported that 25 people were officially missing, said Malliri. people could be among the still unidentified remains of the dead. The official asked anonymity because the fire is still under investigation.
Bishop Kyrillos, a senior official of the local Greek Orthodox Church, said the community mourned the simultaneous loss of his family, neighbors and friends. 19659002] "There is less of us now than usual," said the bishop. "It's the victims of the recent fire that we miss – friends, relatives and acquaintances, people on the other side that we see every day in the city and on the beach."
Local resident Angeliki Galiatsatou said that she fire that killed others in their cars and their homes.
"I came to pray for people who were lost and I pray God bless us all," she said.
Dozens of volunteer divers, including the retired Seals, once again ventured into the sea on Sunday to look for the bodies of the most likely victims. The search was abandoned, without result, because of a sudden storm.
The Greek authorities claimed to have reason to believe that the fire was caused by arson and that it had become so deadly that winds of 100 km / h The Greek government was also criticized for the way buildings and roads have been developed in the area and a presumed lack of adequate preparation for the fire season. More than 2,000 homes were damaged and about a quarter will have to be demolished, Greek officials said Friday.
The Holy Synod, made up of all the Greek Bishops, said in a letter to the memorial service on Sunday that everyone wears "
" What words of comfort can you offer to the person who has lost his father, his mother, the grandparents in whose arms their grandchildren were found? Said Kyrillos. "What words of consolation can you offer to a mother who has lost her baby and left some flowers on the beach?"
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