Koropi: fire in Karelas fought by 45 firefighters

A fire broke out in a rural area of Karelas, in the Municipality of Kropia, at midday on Saturday, 15 August 2026, at the junction of Peisistratou and Dimosthenous streets. According to Fire Service data reported by local media in eastern Attica, dry grass and farmland were burning, with the initial fire front estimated at about one stremma (roughly 0.1 hectare). 45 firefighters with a ground crew from the 1st Special Firefighting Response Unit responded at the scene, while two helicopters and two aircraft assisted from the air. The fire was brought under control with a final tally of two stremmata (about 0.2 hectares) burned, with no injuries or damage to homes reported. The alert came shortly after midday, and the first forces arrived at the scene promptly, as the area lies close to a residential zone.

The strong mobilisation for such a small fire front was no accident. Attica was under fire risk category 4 that same day, meaning very high risk, according to the daily forecast map of the General Secretariat for Civil Protection. Under these conditions, operational tactics call for a massive and immediate deployment of forces at the first alert, so the fire has no chance to develop. The same approach was applied earlier the same morning to a smaller fire front in Spata, near the town hall, where vehicles rushed in from Paiania and Koropi. Wind gusts recorded in Attica over the same two days locally reached seven on the Beaufort scale, increasing the rate of spread and making the use of aerial assets harder at peak hours.

Karelas is a transitional zone between the urban fabric of Koropi and the farmland of the Mesogeia, with scattered homes, storage facilities and uncultivated plots. These areas accumulate dry vegetation by late summer and lie close to medium-voltage grids and busy roads, factors that increase the likelihood of a fire starting. Eastern Attica has recorded a series of incidents this year, from the fire in Kouvaras to recent incidents in Rafina and Pikermi, where a ban on movement in forests and Natura areas has been imposed. Proximity to workshops and warehouses makes any fire front in this zone potentially dangerous, even when the burnt area remains small.

The Fire Service’s investigation unit is looking into the causes, with no assessment of the fire’s origin made public. For Sunday, 16 August, Civil Protection kept Attica on heightened alert, meaning forces remain on standby and bans on movement in forested areas continue to apply. Residents are urged to avoid any work that produces a spark or flame outdoors. More from the area on the Koropi page. The Fire Service kept forces at the scene for monitoring, to rule out the possibility of flare-ups from residual hotspots.