The Minister of Interior Mr. Constantinos Ioannou, after the Interministerial Committee convened on fire prevention and extinguishing.
Mr. Ioannou chaired a meeting today, with the participation of the competent Ministers of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment and Defence, while the Minister of Justice and Public Order was represented by the Director General of the Ministry.
Also present at the coordination meeting were the Chiefs of Police and National Guard, the Prefects, the Commander of Civil Defence, the Commander of the Search and Rescue Coordination Centre, the Chief of the Fire Service and the Director of the Forestry Department. Also present were representatives from the Meteorology and Public Works Departments, the Ambulance Service, the Game and Wildlife Service, the Press and Information Office, and other relevant services, as well as from the Associations of Cyprus Municipalities and Communities.
The Interior Minister in his statements to reporters said that the inter-ministerial committee was held with all ministers in charge, in the presence of officials from all departments involved "with the aim of coordination for fire prevention and suppression".
This committee, he noted, "is essentially acting as a preventive mechanism so that we can assess the degree of preparedness of the various departments."
He informed that there was "positioning from all departments involved."
"The adequacy of equipment, whether it is in terms of aviation means or firefighting means," he said, adding that the adequacy of fire fighting works and zones was also discussed, as well as the work done by the Provincial Administrations.
"Where some problems were identified, instructions were given immediately so that the necessary preparations could be made in time," he said."
The Interior Minister stressed that "in general, both I and my fellow ministers are very satisfied, both with the coordination between the services and the adequacy compared to previous years in terms of equipment and human resources.
Asked by a reporter whether the air assets are ready to respond to fire incidents, the Minister said that according to the information he received from the Ministry of Agriculture, "the assets are ready to handle any eventuality."
In response to another question from a reporter, which concerned the adequacy of staffing of the agencies, the Minister noted that no staffing issues were raised by any agency during the meeting. On the contrary, he said, "they have been staffed with additional personnel compared to last year, as well as additional equipment, be it small fire fighting vehicles or personal equipment, etc."
"All necessary actions have been wheeled out. So we are at a much better level in terms of manpower and equipment than in previous years," Ioannou continued.
In response to a question as to whether management centres in rural areas are expected to be coordinated during the summer, the Minister explained that, on the basis of the operational plans, the Forestry Department is responsible for mountainous areas, while the Fire Service is responsible for the countryside and urban areas.
In response to another question on whether an operational centre has been established, the Minister explained that the central operational centre is the "Zenon" of the Search and Rescue Centre, which is activated in the event of a crisis, noting that there are individual Plans, depending on the incident.
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