God Helps Those Who Help Themselves
God Helps Those Who Help Themselves
Written by Wednesday, 23 September 2009 00:00
Translated from Greek by the Webmaster.
Ten years ago the fire in the east part of Attica, Greece, turned a beautiful pine forest into ashes. The events that took place during this and subsequent fires in Greece proved, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that the Greek authorities were either unwilling and / or unable to deal effectively with the numerous fires which eradicated a large number of forests, wild animals, homes and people all over the country. Each and every summer a considerable number of the few remaining forested areas in Greece gets destroyed by fires; each and every summer there is no planning, protection or efficient and effective response from the authorities. As we live near a forest I was certain we would have to face the flames again - sooner or later. It was clear that the lack of appropriate fire protection would result in devastating the area, at least in terms of plant and animal lives. Regrettably the fires on the 22nd and the 23rd of August 2009 proved me right. Yet this time I was prepared to fight the flames with the help of my son and one of his friends using my own fire protection system.
The fire destroyed a piny mountain slope; thankfully our home and land, also abounding in pines and other trees, did not suffer. Our saving grace was the DIY fire protection system installed, which is what I will present here.
The photos below show the piny slope nearby before anad after the fire:
Very briefly, the night of the 22nd of August, having been alerted to a fire which started on the mountain, our neighbours and ourselves came out in the nearby main road and were observing the direction of the fire. The flames - surrounding the great big pines - and the thick black smoke over the forest was a heartbreaking sight: how many birds, tortoises, wild rabbits and foxes were being burned alive? How many years would it take for the forest to re-establish itself, assuming this would still be possible? What would prevent the slope gradually deteriorating and becoming a rocky site without the roots of these trees to keep the soil in place? With the ground exposed, what was left to protect us, the local people, from floods following the heavy winter rains? Without the insect eating birds that inhabited the forest how would we deal with the growing population of annoying and potentially dangerous insects in the summer? Our homes were in danger; the natural balance of the local ecosystem was being destroyed.
The fire brigade did arrive at some point but left shortly after; we were told the fire engine was instructed to go on duty outside the house of some politician, which, incidentally, was nowhere near an area even remotely affected by the fire. For all they were concerned the Greek authorities left us - the cizitzens - our homes, our children and our forest to burn. So much so for the way our taxes are invested; so much so for the respect and support we get from our Government.
My only hope was the DIY system I had installed some years ago, following the previous fire. It is not a complicated or technologically advanced system. Simple as it may be, it proved effective in saving our home, land and pine trees from the fire. Here it is:
When it was clear we should not expect any help from the fire brigade my son, a friend and myself cleaned a bit the area around our land removing the obvious objects which would be susceptible to catch fire from the embers: dry logs and twigs and some of the pine needles. We then waited for the fire to approach. When the flames surrounded the trees of the garden next door to us we got the water pumps started. The water dampened the folliage, trunks and dead leaves sufficiently so that when the flames reached our land there was nothing dry to burn; the trees were wet, the soil was soaked. The high winds soon carried the flames over our land to the next field leaving our trees and home effectively unharmed.
My DIY fire protection system costs around 2000 Euros. It is money well invested by people living in, or near, areas likely to suffer from fires. It does not just allow you to save your home; your garden and all the wild life living there will also be safe.
You will need:
- One plastic water vat (2000 lit capacity) - it costs roughly 300 Euros
- one generator (single phase or 220V/5 KVA) - it costs roughly 700 Euros
- two electric water pumps 220 V/1, 5Kw each - the total cost is roughly 600 Euros. The output of each one of these pumps is about 12,000 lit /h; they can pump water to a manometric height of 10 meters
- plastic and galvanized 1,5" or 2" pipes - these cost roughly 200 Euros
- switches or valves, pipe connectors and spray gun attachments (I used the standard ones available at garden centres or DIY shops) - these cost roughly 200 Euros
The cost of the materials is about 2000 Euros. Add to this the labour costs if you need to, though it should be noted that it is not a difficult system to install. By comparison to the cost of repairing damages caused by a fire (considering only the financial implications of such a catastrophe) this sum is really negligible.
Greece is a beautiful country; the people are inventive, industrious, good hearted. Regrettably none of these qualities is manifested by the civil service. I know it for a fact that in the event of a fire the Greek authorities will not come to my assistance. One would expect, at the very least, that the Citizen's Advice Bureau would issue some kind of guidance notes to people living in areas likely to suffer from fires in the summer regarding steps they can take to minimize danger to themselves, their properties and the surrounding area (forests). Regrettably not even this happens; an important issue such as fire protection is left entirely to the imagination, will and ability of each individual.
It is worth noting that in addition to the total lack of support from the fire brigade during the recent fire we also suffered a power failure and an interruption of the water supply, just as the land and trees next door were consumed by the flames. Under the circumstances it is advisable to ensure that you have a sufficient quantity of water stored as well as an electricity generator which can keep the water pumps operating for the required period of time. Otherwise any attempts you make to save your property and the local fauna and flora are doomed to fail. The desired outcome is to be able, at any given moment in time, to release via the spray guns a large quantity of water which will dampen the trees, their folliage and the dead or withered leaves and twigs on the ground - and will keep them damp until the fire is over the area. Remember that the fire will move over soon; the winds carry the flames and the embers quite fast.
I hope these notes will be useful in saving homes, fauna and flora. This will make me really happy.
Photos by the author.
Webmaster's note: The author has given prior permission to all interested parties to reproduce this article in its entirety should they consider such reproduction to be conducive to effective fire protection.
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