‘We didn’t respond as we should have’ President apologises over fire

“At a critical moment like this, the government did not respond as it should have,” he said in a televised address.

He then listed 12 immediate actions by the government to support those affected.

“We need to examine what did not work, why it did not work, and take any necessary corrective measures,” Christodoulides said, adding that he has given instructions for all involved departments to submit full assessment reports of their role and involvement in managing the fires by the end of the week.

In the interest of transparency, he said, these  reports will be made public, and based on them, subsequent steps will be decided.

Christodoulides had previously held a meeting at the presidential residence in Troodos with the community leaders of villages directly impacted by the fires with relevant ministers and the mountains commissioner.

After listening to their assessments and personal testimonies about what happened and where weaknesses were identified, Christodoulides said “we agreed on the immediate actions of the government to support those affected. We will be by everyone’s side. Together we will get through this ordeal”.

He urged the people to judge the government strictly, as befits a democracy that aims to and can become better, but at the same time spoke about unity so that we can progress and make improvements. 

“I am communicating directly with you in a difficult moment for our homeland, after the ordeal we experienced — the devastating fires in the mountainous region of Limassol, which resulted in the tragic loss of two fellow citizens, injuries, destruction of property, arable land, livestock facilities, loss of animals, and serious environmental impacts”.

Expressing his deepest sorrow for those who died, he offered his sincere condolences to their loved ones.

He added that he had seen “from the very first moment the extraordinary efforts, under the most difficult conditions, of professionals and volunteers to confront the raging inferno, to prevent further spread, with the primary concern of saving human lives. That is why I want to thank all those who went above and beyond, the firefighters, forestry firefighters, community leaders, volunteers, police, state and other services, members of the National Guard, Civil Defence, but also the people within the communities, for addressing the many fronts, in many cases putting their own lives at risk”.

At the same time, he said, “the outcome requires improvement of the system’s weaknesses and the relevant mechanisms so that we can respond to such critical incidents. And this, despite the fact that, among other things, we proceeded to increase the personnel of firefighters and forestry firefighters, secured the maximum number of aerial assets, made penalties stricter and transferred the aerial assets to the National Guard. So we need to see what didn’t work, why it didn’t work, and make any necessary corrective moves”.

As a state, he said, “we must identify all the gaps, omissions, and acknowledge that, in a critical moment like this, we did not respond as we should have. On behalf of the state, I apologise.