Fire brigade chief Nikos Longinos on Tuesday defended his actions during the wildfire which tore through the Limassol district and killed two people last month, saying he could not go above the heads of cabinet and direct the emergency services’ response to the fire.

“Under no circumstances could I violate cabinet’s decision and assume the duties of a coordinator,” he said, “I cannot coordinate the forestry department, Civil Defence, or the police”.

He added that he is typically responsible for coordinating the fire brigade, but that he was de facto called upon to liaise with other institutions.

He said firefighters followed his instructions “to the letter”, before saying that fires had been lit “maliciously” in various parts of the island during the weeks and months which preceded the fire in the Limassol district.

On this matter, he gave the example of a fire which broke out in the Paphos district village of Inia, where he said a t-shirt soaked in flammable material had been found.

The fire in the Limassol district, he said, had broken out at 1.28pm on July 23, with the fire brigade first arriving on the scene exactly 15 minutes later.

More to follow…