The German media outlet Deutsche Welle (DW) reports on the Greek islands’ preparations ahead of the summer of 2024 following a series of natural disasters including forest fires and floods.
As DW notes, last July’s images from Rhodes made the headlines around the globe with towering flames, reaching ten meters high, propelled by fierce winds towards hotels.
DW reports that approximately 20,000 tourists and locals were evacuated to safety. Even after normal flight schedules to Rhodes resumed shortly after the wildfires, many tourists returned to the island to financially support the local economy. In its report, the German outlet wonders what the largest of the Dodecanese Island, and other islands, can expect from this year’s season.
The piece highlights the Greek government’s actions to alleviate the negative impact of natural disasters, while the wave of solidarity surpassed all precedents, not only from Greeks but also from foreign visitors to Greece.
For those who had to cancel their vacations in Rhodes last July due to the wildfires, the government offered a trip at the beginning or end of this year’s season, free for a week.
The climate crisis has undeniably touched Greece, as Deutsche Welle reports citing experts, environmentalists, and politicians, including Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Rhodes Mayor Alexandros Koliadis. The government recently announced a 2.1 billion-euro investment in disaster prevention. “The ‘Aegis’ action plan is necessary because the climate crisis has been here for a while,” stated the Greek Prime Minister. The wildfires of 2023 illustrated beyond any doubt that nothing will be like before.
To address the rising challenges of climate change, the Greek state has adopted a series of measures, including plans to procure ten additional firefighting helicopters, five firefighting planes, and hundreds of new vehicles for the firefighting service.
Investments will also be made in civil protection infrastructure, technical equipment, and new technologies such as unmanned aircraft, which could be used for fires in remote areas. The Mayor of Rhodes believes that tourists are well aware of climate change. “They are not surprised by the weather on vacation. I would say they have already adapted.” Ultimately, this applies to everyone: “We must change our attitude towards nature and act accordingly.”
