2023-07-18 17:51:59
“Many times we are dealing with people who don’t want to leave their homes and animals. We have had to do the psychologist in order to save them and their pets, as they refuse to leave their premises, even if the fire is literally inside their house.” THE Dimitris Grammatikakis is a dog trainer and volunteer – rescuer of the animal rescue group Alma Libre – Hellenic Animal Rescue. On July 17, he participated in 27 rescues. “We were in the fires from 18:00 until 2:15. In one case the owners had gone away and left their dogs behind in cages, but we have no right to enter private property without permission. In order to open the gate, the presence of the Police was necessary. We managed and got in touch with the owners, even by phone they gave us the relevant permission and thus we were able to save their animals”.
A woman gives water to her horse as her husband, on a tractor, tries to put out a fire with a hose on a farm near Loutraki. AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris
THE Alexis Mantzoros, also a volunteer rescuer of the Alma Libre group explains that the Special Secretariat for the Protection of Companion Animals of the Ministry of the Interior was the one who forwarded the citizens’ requests to them and they rushed to the spots themselves. “One of the rescues we did was of two dogs whose owner is a sailor and is currently on a trip outside Greece. He asked us to rescue his dogs even if we have to break into the house. This is indeed what we did, with the presence of the Police of course.
The most difficult was when our volunteers identified in the wider area of Kouvara Kalyvia a fenced area that was directly threatened by the fire. The place belonged to a woman who had more than 20 dogs, but she was trying to convince us that there was no reason to evacuate. With a lot of effort we managed to remove a total of 22 dogs and three cats, and with great effort she agreed to put five more dogs in her car in order to remove them herself.”
Evacuation of a dog from a house near Mandra Attica. AP Photo/Thanasis Stavrakis
Regarding the expertise of the volunteers, Mr. Grammatikakis explains that training for animal rescue is generally empirical and how it is done in the field. He started his voluntary action as a rescuer in 2017. “The most difficult year was 2021. I went twice to Varypompi, twice to Arcadia and twice to Evia. Within 15 days we made six trips. Certainly there are many voluntary private individuals who want to help, but unwittingly sometimes, instead of facilitating, they make the work of rescuers, firefighters and police officers more difficult. It is very important to follow the rules of protection.”
From her side Special Secretariat for the Protection of Companion Animalsthe head Marianthi Dimopoulou points out that operationally one part was set up in the area of the Special Secretariat and the other in LATO, in the old quarries of the municipality of Galatsi.
Many of the rescued pets were taken to LATO. In Time Photo
“There were hundreds of calls until the early hours of the morning,” he told “K”. “Wherever we were asked, we sent volunteers who helped in rescues and transported the animals to LATO. The productive animals and equines were transferred to Katrina Tsantali’s A Little Shelter. We estimate that there are around 150 pets and 200 in total. All of this is of course done in collaboration with the Civil Protection, the Fire Department, the Police, but also the NGO Dogs’ Voice, while even foreign organizations were in the field and helped. In the future, regarding the training of volunteers, we are going to sign a memorandum of cooperation with the General Secretariat of Civil Protection, so that the volunteers of the animal welfare associations can be trained and be part of a Voluntary Organization of Civil Protection”.
When citizens rush for help
THE Maria Kavuka, a resident of Kouvaras, has been involved in horse riding for years. Yesterday saw his appeal Anavyssos Equestrian Club how they need help to round up the horses and transport them safely to the Olympic Properties. He immediately rushed to the scene and as he says the picture he saw was of absolute chaos.
The facilities of the Anavyssos Equestrian Club given over to the flames. In Time Photo / Yannis Liakos
“The fire had surrounded us. The stable had been given over to the flames,” he describes. “When we arrived most of the horses were already being loaded into trucks. We helped catch a horse that had stayed inside the stable and wouldn’t let us near it. Then we tried through the flames to see if there were any more that hadn’t been spotted. We were informed that there were three horses running on their own, I found out later that they were rescued. A dog was burned inside the stable and did not manage to get out. Leaving, in the area of Anavyssos I saw many dead cats and some dogs, I guess most of them were strays”.
Mr. Grammatikakis confirms that the vast majority of animals saved in fires are pets, as they are already in a fenced environment and are much easier to approach. “Unfortunately we focus on what is being saved. Sometimes I feel that what we do is a drop in the ocean, but for these animals it is their whole life.”
“When we arrived most of the horses were already being loaded into trucks. We helped catch a horse that had stayed in the stable and wouldn’t let us approach it.” In Time Photo / Yannis Liakos
As animals do not have the ability to save themselves, the task of saving them is ours.
THE Stamatina Stamatakou, journalist and director of the Zero Stray Pawject Academy comments that “for another year we are faced with fires that threaten human lives and properties. But the first victims are the invisible ones, and these are none other than the animals. Yesterday, the Fazoo farm shelter burned down, and today there are dozens of casualties. It all happened so fast that the Fazoo people didn’t even have time to call for help. Amidst all this blackness, at least this is the first time we see the cooperation of the Ministry of the Interior with animal welfare organizations and rescue and release groups. As animals do not have the ability to save themselves, the task of rescuing them is ours: when we see an animal in need we inform, call and do not pass. At the same time, a difficult, but also unpleasant conversation must begin about whether our country’s shelters meet the standards and can accommodate animals. And I’m talking both about the shelters of the volunteers, the animal welfare associations, but also about the shelters of the municipalities”.
Info: Anyone who finds a trapped animal that it is impossible for them to rescue themselves, or who needs trucks or an ambulance to rescue a large number of animals, can immediately call the official telephone numbers of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications 2131364020 the 2131364933 the 2131364935 the 2131364036.
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