Fire in Paradise

It is the worst forest fire in the history of Cyprus. (Charalambos Alexandrou, Director of the Forestry Department)

If you have been following the news closely, you may have heard about the fire in Cyprus. The fire broke out on Saturday afternoon in the Limassol region and was finally brought under control on Monday morning. The government received support from Israel and the EU. Four Egyptian farm workers lost their lives, several villages in Limassol and Larnaca were evacuated, and over 50 houses were destroyed. The fire was apparently caused by a 67-year-old man who wanted to burn garden waste - not a good idea on an island with 300 sunny days and corresponding dryness.

We first noticed the red sky on Saturday evening. On Sunday morning, we noticed that everything on our terrace was covered with a light layer of ash. We spent Sunday with new acquaintances in Kalavasos - halfway to Limassol. The fire could even be smelled there. And back home, we could see several firefighting planes above us, tirelessly in use.

It was the first time that we realized that we have been living relatively safely so far. I guess a flood in Hamburg would have been the only danger to us and our belongings. Maybe also falling branches in bad weather. Looking back, I have already experienced an earthquake in Turkey and tornadoes in the USA. I have been spared from natural disasters in Japan, and in Germany, I can only remember Timo who had to take off his shoes and roll up his pants to walk through the floodwaters at the fish market on his way home from Airbus. And now Cyprus. Actually, we live in a very urban area, but there is a cornfield right in front of our house, where a fire could theoretically break out at any time. I still have to get used to this thought.

Burning garbage is prohibited, as well as private fireworks, which, however, are part of celebrations here and are still celebrated cheerfully. We can only hope that all the victims will be helped as best as possible and that this fire has awakened people.