Arcadia: fire in Pigadakia, 25 firefighters

A wildfire broke out on the afternoon of Monday, 17 August, in an area of low vegetation in Pigadakia, Arcadia, with the Fire Service mobilizing significant forces. According to the service’s announcement, as reported by Ta Nea, the incident occurred at around 18:15. 25 firefighters are responding at the scene with a ground unit from the 9th Special Forest Fire Force (EMODE) and five fire vehicles, while two aircraft are assisting from the air. Water tankers from the Municipality of Tripoli are also taking part in the firefighting effort. The Tripoli Arson Investigation Unit was activated to look into the causes. The incident was the leading breaking story on national media during the early evening hours. The time it broke out, shortly after six in the evening, places the incident near the end of the daily window in which manned aircraft can operate.

A notable feature of this operation is that the Unified Coordination Centre for Operations and Crisis Management (ESKEDIK) is maintaining continuous coverage of the fire front via an unmanned aircraft equipped with thermal and optical cameras. The thermal camera allows active hotspots to be located through smoke and, crucially, after sunset, when manned aircraft cannot operate. Drone use has become standard in Greek firefighting doctrine in recent years for precisely this reason: it bridges the gap during nighttime hours, when ground crews are working alone and the risk of flare-ups is higher.

Arcadia is among the regional units with rugged terrain and large areas of low vegetation, which by August are in a state of complete dryness. The combination of shrub vegetation with strong winds allows a fire front to spread rapidly, even when the initial spot is small. Proximity to Tripoli means forces can reach the scene relatively quickly, while the municipality’s water tankers cover the vehicles’ resupply needs, which in mountainous areas is often the limiting factor in an operation. The greater Tripoli area sits at altitude, and the Mantineia plateau is surrounded by mountain ranges, a feature that affects wind behavior during the afternoon hours.

As of Monday evening, it had not been announced that the fire was under control, nor had an estimate of the burned area been given. No activation of a 112 alert for precautionary evacuation was reported, nor were there any injuries or threats to homes. The arson investigation unit will examine both the possibility of negligence — for example from farming work or a discarded lit cigarette — and the possibility of deliberate arson. The Peloponnese was among the areas flagged as higher risk on the daily forecast map, and for Tuesday, 18 August, the northern Peloponnese remains in the high-risk category. More on wildfires on the Fire page. It has also not been made known whether livestock facilities or storage buildings in the wider area were evacuated as a precaution.