PHOTO // Another 22 Moldovan firefighters deployed to Greece to combat wildfires

A second team of firefighters from the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations (IGSU) of the Ministry of Internal Affairs has departed today for the Hellenic Republic, as part of an international mission to combat forest and vegetation fires, under the aegis of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.

The 22 Moldovan rescuers will replace the first contingent that operated in Greece between July 14 and 30, intervening in five major fires under extreme temperature conditions and rough terrain. One of the most difficult missions took place in the town of Polithea, where Moldovan and Greek teams extinguished the fire outbreaks within 30 hours.

The new team will participate until August 17 in monitoring, patrolling, and firefighting operations in high-risk regions. The mission is part of the pre-positioning program for intervention teams, which involves the pre-deployment of specialized forces in areas with a high risk of fires. This year, 323 firefighters from Romania, France, the Czech Republic, Austria, and the Republic of Moldova are pre-positioned in Greece.

At the official deployment ceremony, Minister of Internal Affairs Daniella Misail-Nichitin emphasized the active role of the Republic of Moldova in the European cooperation framework in civil protection.


“Colleagues, you're not just going to extinguish fires. You are on a human, European, and national mission. You are going to save lives, protect nature, and demonstrate once again that the Republic of Moldova is a responsible, supportive state ready to work shoulder to shoulder with other European Union member states,” stated Daniella Misail-Nichitin.


The mission is coordinated by the Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (DG ECHO) and aims to enhance emergency response capacity, improve interoperability between international intervention teams, and optimize joint training.