August 23, 2023

Eighteen bodies have been found in a forested area of northern Greece hit by wildfires for the past four days, the Greek fire service says. Initial reports suggest those who died may have been migrants. A coroner and investigation team are heading to the scene near the Dadia forest. The Evros region of north-eastern Greece, not far from the Turkish border, has been ravaged by fires. A hospital in the city of Alexandroupolis had to be evacuated. Newborn babies and intensive care patients were among those moved to a ferry at the port. Fires are raging across several fronts in Greece, whipped up by high winds and temperatures which climbed above 40C in several places on Tuesday. Flames are thought to have spread rapidly since Monday in the large wooded Dadia national park to the north of Alexandroupolis. Emergency services sent mobile text messages to the surrounding areas asking people to leave. Before the latest grim discovery, an initial death believed to have been of a migrant was reported in the area. Eighteen more bodies were found on Tuesday near a hut outside the village of Avantas, reports said, when the fire brigade inspected the charred remains of a building. Fire service spokesman Yiannis Artopios said the possibility that the victims had entered Greece illegally was being investigated, given that there had been no reports of missing residents. Unconfirmed reports said the bodies were discovered in two groups and there were fears that the number of casualties could increase. The fire service said investigations were continuing throughout the area where the fire had spread. The Evros region has become one of the most popular routes for Syrian and Asian migrants crossing the River Evros from Turkey into the European Union. The Dadia forest is also known to be a route favoured by migrants. Yiannis Artopios stressed that emergency messages had been sent to all mobile phones in the area, including foreign networks. Migrant support group Alarm Phone said it had been in contact with more migrants who needed rescuing from the fires. One group of nine people had already crossed the border while another 250 people were stranded on two small islands in the River Evros, it said. In the past three days 380,000 acres of land has burned in the Evros region alone, according to the National Observatory of Athens’ Meteo unit. Firefighters are having to respond to major outbreaks in other parts of Greece too. The fire brigade has urged tens of thousands of people to leave parts of the north-west Athens suburb of Ano Liosia. A few kilometres to the north, 50 nuns were reported trapped when a fire broke out near a historic monastery on the slopes of Mt Parnitha. Several villages have also been evacuated on the island of Evia and in Boeotia in central Greece. A fiery, red glow was visible on the fringe of Alexandroupolis in the early hours of Tuesday and satellite images showed several regions of Greece covered in thick smoke. During the night residents in eight nearby villages were told to leave their homes and head for safety in the city. Later on Tuesday a stream of cars could be seen heading there as vegetation along the coast burned. IMAGE SOURCE,DIMITRIS ALEXOUDIS/EPA-EFE/REX/SHUTTERSTOCKImage caption, A number of those evacuated from the hospital were taken to a ferry at the port of Alexandroupolis Flames were seen entering the grounds of the university hospital while the operation was taking place to evacuate the site on the north-east fringe of Alexandroupolis. Greek officials ordered a fleet of ambulances and buses to take some 115 patients away. While some of the patients were moved to other hospitals in the city, as many as 90 were taken to a ferry, the Adamantios Korais, which has been requisitioned to look after intensive care patients and new-born babies. West of Athens, several warehouses became engulfed in flames in an industrial area in Aspropyrgos and close to the Attica Highway the sky darkened with acrid smoke. Two Albanian workers told the BBC that if helicopters had arrived in time they would have been able to put the fire out. Around midday on Tuesday a second large fire broke out on the opposite side of the highway in the village of Fyli. Half an hour later residents received a mobile phone message from the 112 emergency number to evacuate the area. IMAGE SOURCE,KOSTAS TSIRONIS/EPA-EFE/REX/SHUTTERSTOCKImage caption, Fires raged out of control around Fyli, close to the Attica Highway Meanwhile, France endured its hottest ever day on Monday after the mid-August holiday, according to weather service Météo-France. Temperatures on Monday soared as high as 42.4C in the Drôme area of south-eastern France but the record refers to Monday’s daily average temperature of 26.63C, recorded in 30 weather stations across France. In Switzerland, the high temperatures have pushed the “zero-degree isotherm” – the height where temperatures fall below freezing point – to a record altitude. MeteoSwiss said the limit had now increased to 5,298m (17,381ft). The point is shifting steadily higher, mainly because of global warming induced by humans, the Swiss met office says. The increased height of the zero-degree isotherm has been accelerating since the 1970s, especially in spring and summer, it says. Source:https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-66579193 

Officials in Hawaii have urged residents to submit DNA samples to help in the identification of human remains found in the ashes of a fast-moving wildfire on the island of Maui that killed at least 115 people earlier this month. According to authorities, at least 1,100 people are still missing, with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) seeking family members’ help in identifying the remains of the dead, the AFP reported. end of list Special Agent Steven Merrill told reporters on Tuesday, that the number of missing people was likely to rise. “We’re cross-referencing all the lists so that we can determine who in fact truly is still unaccounted for,” Merrill said. Investigators acknowledged the possibility that not all of the remains of victims from the fire that started on August 8 on Maui will ever be found. The tourist town of Lahaina, home to 12,000 people, was all but wiped off the map, with thousands of missing people initially appearing on lists maintained by various organisations, including the police, Red Cross and shelters. Video Duration 02 minutes 06Maui wildfire survivors decry lack of warnings as death toll rises Maui County Prosecuting Attorney Andrew Martin, tasked with heading up the family assistance centre, said that he has spoken with experts who have handled DNA sampling in mass-casualty disasters elsewhere, and that he is seeing less willingness in Hawaii. “The number of family members who are coming in to provide DNA samples is a lot lower than they’ve seen in other disasters,” he said. Martin said he could not explain why people seemed less willing to provide DNA samples – so far 104 had been collected. He added that he hoped his reassurances that the DNA provided would only be used to identify remains, and would not be transferred to any law enforcement database or agency, would help more family members come forward. Investigators said the list of the approximately 1,100 missing people was a complex jumble that included some people identified by a single name, others with missing data like birth dates, some people whose genders were not clear and also that there were likely duplicate reports of the same people as the list is compiled from varied sources. They gave no forecast on when or if they might ever finish the task of accounting for everybody on the list. They also said they could not yet give an estimate on what the total number of people killed by the fire would eventually be. Maui police chief John Pelletier urged people to provide DNA and file a police report with as much information as possible if they have relatives unaccounted for. “If you feel you’ve got a family member that’s unaccounted for, give the DNA,” he said. “Do the report. Let’s figure this out. A name with no callback doesn’t help anybody.” Pelletier said authorities were refining the data and were hoping to publish a verified list of missing persons “in the next few days”. The devastation was so bad, though, that Pelletier warned that even after all the searching for remains is over, “I can’t guarantee … that we got everybody.” SOURCE:https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/8/23/hawaii-officials-seek-families-help-in-identifying-remains-of-victims

After nearly 15 hours of effort, commandos of the Pakistan Army successfully rescued all eight people who were stuck inside a cable car after one of its ropes broke down in Allai Tehsil in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Battagram district. Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar made the announcement on X, previously known as Twitter, saying: “Relieved to know that Alhamdolillah all the kids have been successfully and safely rescued. Great team work by the military, rescue departments, district administration as well as the local people.” Earlier in the morning, an open cable car became stranded halfway across a ravine and was hanging by a single cable after the other snapped, leaving eight people stuck inside for more than 15 hours. Before sunset, two of the children were rescued with the help of an army helicopter but the operation via copter was suspended due to darkness and the windy weather. The army later started a ground operation — led by SSG’s general officer commanding (GOC) — to retrieve the remaining five people on the cable car with alternative means. Another cable car — smaller in size — was hung on the same cable to retrieve the people and deliver food and water to them. The Pakistan Army also brought in a local cable crossings expert for help. Pakistan Army Aviation and the Pakistan Air Force participated in the rescue operation along with the SSG troops. The rescue mission had several complications including gusty winds in the area and the risk of the helicopter’s rotor blades further destabilising the lift. Political figures heap praise on army, locals Soon after the successful completion of the rescue mission, political leaders started heaping praise on the army’s rescue officials, locals and authorities involved in the risky operation. Initial report of incident An initial report of the incident says that seven schoolchildren and a local person were travelling in the cable car to go to the Batangi Government High School. According to the report, one cable of the lift broke at around 7:45am which led to the cable car being stranded mid-air. The cable car hands at a height of 6,000 feet. Abrar, Irfan, Usama, Rizwan Ullah, Ataullah, Niaz Muhammad, Sher Nawaz and Gul Faraz are stuck inside the lift. The report said that Battagram’s deputy commissioner contacted Hazara’s commissioner after he received report about the incident. The DC asked for the arrangement of a helicopter. Moreover, the SSG team based in Kaghan Valley was also contacted after which the helicopter reached the location at 11:45am. Meanwhile, the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) helicopter reached the site at 2pm. District administration, police, and two rescue teams are currently present at the location, the report said, adding that an emergency has been imposed at the nearby health centres and the District Headquarter Hospital (DHQ) Battagram has also been put on high alert. Punjab’s DG Rescue Dr Rizwan Naseer said that a height rescue team is also on standby and is ready for help. Army to ‘continue rescue operation till night’ According to Geo News, Army Aviation and SSG teams tried to conduct the rescue operation for the fourth time to rescue people inside the cable car. The operation had become very difficult as there was another cable 30 feet above the car which could have collided with the helicopter. However, the rescue operation was conducted with extreme caution. Moreover, the Pakistan Army also kept into consideration other options to continue the rescue operation after it becomes dark. Speaking to Geo News, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Nazeer Ahmed assured that the children inside the cable car were fine. He said that they were in continuous contact with them. Before two of the kids were retrieved, the rescue officials faced several difficulties due to gusty winds. When the Pakistan Army’s rescue helicopter approached the cable. it also started shaking which had led to the risk of the cable car losing balance. Other options to conduct the rescue operation, which is being deemed risky, were also under consideration including a sling operation by the SSG team. Wing Commander (retd) Asim Nawaz had said the sling operation should be started at the earliest. Sling operations are aerial operations where large loads are moved in geographically difficult terrains. “There is a possibility of bad weather in this area. It is better if the helicopter is 60 to 80 feet away from the cable car,” he had said. Speaking about the operation, the former military officer said that a commando will approach closer to the cable car during the sling operation. “A cable car stuck at a height of about 900 ft midway due to breakage in one of its cable in Battagram. 8 persons including 6 children [are] stranded,” the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said in a statement. The statement said NDMA has provided coordination support to Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA). “After coordination Pak Army helicopter has been despatched for [the] rescue operation,” it added. The incident was confirmed by Mansehra Deputy Inspector General of Police Tahir Ayub who said there is no option but to rescue the stranded passengers through a copter. The cable hangs in the middle of a deep ravine surrounded by stunning mountains, where cable cars are frequently used to connect remote villages and towns. Syed Hammad Haider, a senior KP provincial official, said the cable car was hanging about 1,000 to 1,200 feet above the ground. “We have requested the KP government to provide a helicopter because the relief activity is not possible without the help of a helicopter,” he said. ‘Passengers stuck for several hours’ Gulfaraz, a 20-year-old who is currently present on the cable car, told Geo News over the phone that he and other passengers have been stuck for more than six hours. He shared that a 16-year-old passenger, who suffers from a heart condition, has been unconscious for the last three hours. Gulfraz shared that the teenager was going to the hospital through the cable car. “We don’t even have drinking water in the