Forest patrols prevent disaster at Akamas beach barbecue, Koutrafas fire

Local Akamasfirefire serviceTop News Forest patrols prevent disaster at Akamas beach barbecue, Koutrafas fire Souvla Traditional Charcoal Roas Relevant News Forest patrols prevent disaster at Akamas beach barbecue, Koutrafas fire 11 August 2026 Gulf shipping traffic via Strait of Hormuz falls to six vessels 11 August 2026 Thai PM suspends firearm purchase licences after school shooting 11 August 2026 Vassos Vassiliou 11 August 2026 FacebookXWhatsAppEmailPrintViber Forest Department cameras and patrols stopped two illegal fires within hours of each other, department spokesperson Glafkos Kyriakou told philenews. In the first case, a group of young people took their barbecue to Lara beach, which falls within the Akamas forest park. As soon as they lit the coals, they were spotted immediately by the Forest Department’s cameras. A department patrol happened to be in the area and rushed to the scene, and broke up the gathering.Kyriakou noted that, beyond the fire risk itself, there have been past cases of people digging into the sand to bury coals, or even emptying coals onto the beach. The second case involved a person who tried to burn weeds inside their garden in Koutrafas. In this case too, a Forest Department patrol was in the area and put out the fire.The Forest Department did not stop at issuing a warning, but has begun the process of bringing the person responsible before the courts. The question is what would have happened in both cases had a patrol not been near the two spots where fires were lit.Asked about the department’s cameras at Akamas, Kyriakou said these include both thermal cameras that detect smoke and cameras that give the Forest Department a visual view of the forest, allowing it to check whether a fire has broken out anywhere. Kyriakou said the camera system at Akamas was the first to be installed. Speaking generally to the public, he said that, however often the department repeats itself, it is calling on both visitors and holidaymakers, as well as professionals, to be especially careful, to protect themselves, others and the forests. The Forest Department points out that forest fires are mainly caused by human factors, resulting from deliberate acts and from negligence, and to a lesser extent from natural causes such as lightning. The main causes of forest fires are agricultural activities, discarding lit cigarette butts or matches, lighting fires in unauthorised spots, burning rubbish in unapproved areas, military exercises, hunting activities, and activities at homes such as the use of power tools that cause sparks, or short circuits in live cables. Subscribe to our Newsletter Latest News Gulf shipping traffic via Strait of Hormuz falls to six vessels Thai PM suspends firearm purchase licences after school shooting Colombia rescue efforts press on after quake, death toll expected to rise “I don’t have ‘Cypriot blood’ but I’m a proud Cypriot,” says teen bronze medallist More than half of new Cyprus cars now hybrid Public GPs don’t close at 3pm, health chief says Isaak and Solomou killings: 30 years on, no one has been convicted Follow en.philenews on Google News and be the first to know all the news about Cyprus and the world.