Four people have been arrested in Chania and Aetolia-Acarnania over separate fire incidents and fire-safety violations, with authorities imposing administrative fines totalling €10,429.68.
The Fire Service’s Investigation Units for Arson Crimes responded to four separate incidents on Saturday, August 29, and Sunday, August 30, 2026.
In Chania, authorities arrested a man at around 5 p.m. on Saturday for allegedly causing a fire through negligence while operating a boom-lift vehicle in the Plek atina area. During the work, the vehicle cut electricity cables, triggering a fire in dry grass on a roadside slope.
The fire burned approximately 20 square metres before firefighters contained it. Authorities imposed a €3,867.18 fineon the man.
Police also arrested another man in Galatas, Chania, on the same day for using a barbecue in breach of fire-safety regulations. The area’s daily fire danger rating stood at Category 5, indicating extreme risk. Authorities imposed a €2,812.50 fine.
Later on Saturday, authorities arrested a third man in Vamvakopoulo, Chania, for lighting and using fire during a cultural event, also in violation of fire-safety regulations while the area faced Category 5 extreme fire danger.
He received a €3,750 fine.
In Aetolia-Acarnania, authorities arrested a man on Sunday under the automatic arrest procedure after a heavy articulated truck suffered a mechanical failure and sparked a fire.
The fire broke out at around 8:10 a.m. on a roadside slope covered with dry grass along the Ionia Odos motorway in the Municipality of Xiromero.
The Fire Service said that between January 1 and August 30, 2026, authorities have issued 755 administrative fines worth €1,255,258.98 for fire-related violations.
During the same period, authorities have made 324 arrests for causing fires. Of these, 287 arrests (88.58%) involved negligence, while 37 (11.42%) involved intentional acts.
The Directorate for Arson Crime Investigation has urged the public to comply strictly with fire-safety regulations and check the daily fire danger rating in their area through the Fire Risk Forecast Map issued by Greece’s General Secretariat for Civil Protection.
Authorities warned that they will apply all administrative and criminal penalties предусмотрed by law for fire-safety violations.
The Fire Service also stressed that the overwhelming majority of fires continue to result from human negligence. It urged citizens to follow fire-safety measures and avoid activities that could generate sparks or cause ignition, stressing that such precautions remain essential to protecting lives, the environment and property.
