Second contingent of Romanian firefighters arrives in Greece to relieve 1st contingent personnel

The second contingent of 40 Romanian firefighters has arrived in Greece to relieve the personnel who, over the past two weeks, have been supporting the Greek authorities through firefighting operations and monitoring of high fire-risk areas in the east of Athens, the Inspectorate General for Emergency Situations (IGSU) announced on Saturday.

According to an IGSU press release sent to AGERPRES, the first contingent, also made up of 40 firefighters, will return to Romania after handing over to their colleagues in the second rotation the nine technical means deployed in Greece, which include two forest fire engines with a 3,000-litre capacity, one 4,000-litre fire engine, one large-capacity fire engine (10,000 litres), one 30,000-litre tanker, one rapid intervention vehicle (200 litres), one shortwave radio communication vehicle, one minibus and one lorry with a container, ensuring continuity of operations in case of incidents requiring intervention.

Over the past 15 days, the 40 Romanian firefighters deployed to Greece participated in fire suppression missions in several areas of the East Attica region (Megara, Neos Voutzas, Palaia Fokaia, Charvalo). They also conducted reconnaissance of the terrain and specific intervention conditions through patrols in areas with high fire risk. These efforts strengthened their response capability and preparedness for managing emergencies that threaten lives and property. Additionally, the firefighters participated in training sessions and joint exercises with Greek teams, focusing on the key elements of a prompt and effective intervention in case of wildfires, the press release shows.

The activation and operational deployment of the specialised forest firefighting module is being carried out to perform specific missions for monitoring and extinguishing fire outbreaks in Greece, in locations indicated by the Greek partners.

According to IGSU, during the period 1 August – 15 September 2025, the Department for Emergency Situations within the Ministry of Internal Affairs, through the Inspectorate General for Emergency Situations, is participating with a national wildfire-fighting module in the pre-positioning programme organised by the Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (DG ECHO). This EU-funded assistance programme is designed as a support measure for communities in Greece severely affected by devastating wildfires in previous years. The initiative is part of the EU’s new policy to prevent and limit wildfires in Southern Europe and this year brings together, on Greek territory, operational teams from Romania, Austria, the Czech Republic, France, the Republic of Moldova and Bulgaria. AGERPRES (RO – writing by: Sorinel Penes; EN – writing by: Adina Panaitescu)