PM Mitsotakis chairs emergency meeting on North Evia, introduces head of reconstruction committee
The government will disburse the first payouts for people whose homes and businesses were damaged in the great fire of North Evia within the next few days, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Wednesday evening, urging the fire-afflicted to sign up at a new platform, arogi.gov.gr, going into effect the same day.
Following a wide meeting he chaired in the afternoon, Mitsotakis also introduced the head of the special committee on the reconstruction of North Evia, Stavros Benos, a former mayor and minister with extensive experience in local government under PASOK, also credited with establishing the citizens service centers known as KEP.
Mitsotakis said that the government was focusing on the wildfire in North Evia compared to other large fires in the Peloponnese and north of Athens because the wildfire in Evia damaged the area's entire production model. For this reason, he announced, the emergency aid being disbursed as a loan will now be without obligation of return, whether a business is fire affected or not.
He also stressed that the immediate priority is to clear the area and stabilize the soil: "We are moving ahead with the removal of burned trees and with infrastructural works, to retain the soil in place - first in order to prevent floods, and then to guarantee that reforestation will be assumed under the best terms possible."
The reason he asked Stavros Benos to lead this effort, Mitsotakis added, "is exactly because we must begin now to plan for the future of North Evia through a holistic approach, using its significant comparative advantages and thinking outside the box, and this is exactly what I expect from the work Stavros will do."
The premier also called for collaboration. He said that besides related ministries, the entire government action plan would be coordinated by Christos Triantopoulos, recently appointed deputy minister to the prime minister on issues of state assistance and restoration following natural disasters.
"But local agencies are also involved - the Region, and the two townships that have been harmed the most. They will speak with us, point us on the way, direct us, and contribute their thoughts," Mitsotakis said, adding that none of this could succeed without the positive contribution of the same people who were affected by the fires.
On his side, Benos said that the appointment was "the most honorary and patriotic invitation I have had in my 43-year career in the public sphere - I never for a second considered turning it down."
Benos outlined the direction of the committee's work to help Evia reconstruct its economy and develop it. The studies that had to be completed for this included the following, he said:
- special urban plans
- master plan for a new forest
- transportation studies for critical infrastructure and networks
- study of the human resources and the future of labor
- study for agrinutrition
- study of a new tourism identity
- study for a green zone, a digital wave, and an innovation space
Attending the meeting were the following officials:
State Minister for Government Coordination Akis Skertsos; Alternate Finance Minister Theodoros Skylakakis; Alternate Interior Minister for Local Government Stelios Petsas; Deputy Development & Investments Minister Ioannis Tsakiris; Triantopoulos; Public Investments & NSRF Secretary General Dimitris Skalkos; Secretary General for Coordination Thanassis Kontogiorgis; head of the PM's Economic Office Alexis Patelis; Governor of the Special Coordination Service of the Recovery Fund Nikos Mantzoufas; advisor of the PM's General Secratariat Grigoris Varras; Central Greece Regional Director Fanis Spanos; Deputy Regional Director for the District of Evia Giorgos Kelaiditis; Istiea-Edipsos Mayor Ioannis Kotzias; Mantoudi-Limni-Agia Anna Mayor Giorgos Tsapourniotis, and the head of programs for 'Diazoma' Evdokimos Fregoglou. Diazoma was founded by Stavros Benos to promote the restoration and recognition of ancient Greek theaters.
