Throughout charred-black trees and razed hills, His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America surveyed the decimation of the Greek island Chios on Aug. 16.
Since late June, wildfires have destroyed an estimated 10,000 acres in the island’s northwestern evergreen thickets. The widespread flames led to the evacuations of thousands of residents of the region and now Chios fights a second blaze, which has destroyed homes and damaged local power grids, leaving many without electricity.
The initial fire was caused by a discarded cigarette, but the flames are now fueled by strong, northerly winds that occur at the brink of the Aegean Sea during the summer months. The major heatwaves that have seared parts of southern Europe, along with the drought-heavy previous months, created the ideal conditions for fire’s spread.
Archbishop Elpidophoros spoke strongly about the crisis, signalling solidarity with those impacted by the most severe succession of burnings Greece has faced in years.
“With great sorrow I visit the places where the destructive wildfire of human negligence and indifference passed before me.” Archbishop Elpidophoros said in Greek, in a field blackened by ash. “We see the consequences of human error, when the paradise we all inherited—the earth, our beautiful nature, and for us Greeks in particular, this paradise called Greece—is turned into a wasteland, a hell, a place of terror, fear, and grief for us all.”
Archbishop Elpidophoros met with the firefighters, residents and local officials responding to the crisis. This is a continuation of his expression of support for the people of Greece upon his arrival to the island a week ago.
“We must first find a way to protect our nature, to safeguard and love our environment. Secondly, we must all work together so that what destruction has left behind, we can restore—transforming our land once again into paradise,” Archbishop Elpidophoros said.
Over the past week, around 150 fires have started throughout the Greek archipelago, where 5,000 firefighters have been sent to contain the flames. Containment efforts have been complicated by extreme weather.
