By STAMOS PROUSALIS and Angeliki Koutantou
ATHENS (Reuters) – Dozens of Greek seasonal firefighters protested in central Athens on Friday to demand permanent jobs – hours after others broke into the climate ministry – after their short-term contracts expired as a dire wildfire season comes to an end.
Wildfires are common in Greece but have become more frequent and for longer periods during the year in recent years amid extreme heat that scientists link to a warming climate that gravely impacts the Mediterranean Sea where the country lies.
With the weather still warm and meteorologists forecasting little rain in the coming days, the fire brigade on Thursday extended its fire-watch season in many regions by two weeks to Nov. 15.
Citing fast-changing climate conditions, some 2,500 seasonal staff whose six-month contracts expire when the fire season typically ends in October said they should be allowed to work throughout the year.
“As you can see today, it’s like summer. Yesterday, we had a major fire. Every day we have fires, so seasonal firefighters should be able to help year-round,” said Panagiotis Andriopoulos, a deputy head of Greece’s association of seasonal firefighters.
One group of protesting contract firefighters broke into the Civil Protection and Climate Crisis Ministry late on Thursday and clashed with riot police.
The conservative government of Kyriakos Mitsotakis will soon launch a process to rehire seasonal staff for the new fire season next year, with the total workforce seen reaching 18,000, Civil Protection Minister Vassilis Kikilias told a radio station on Friday.
Kikilias said he will discuss “extensively” with contract firefighters their concerns in a meeting scheduled for next week.
Some 9,000 forest fires, including one on the outskirts of Athens that killed a woman in August, consumed nearly 109,000 acres of land this summer – Greece’s hottest on record – after a winter with little or no rain.
(Writing by Angeliki Koutantou; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
