Greek court jails 4 officials over botched evacuation during deadly wildfire near Athens

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Four former senior fire service and civil protection officials were jailed in Greece Wednesday after being found guilty for failing to mount a proper evacuation in a wildfire that killed more than 100 people outside Athens in 2018. A former fire chief, his deputy, and head of a disaster coordination center were each sentenced to serve five years in prison for causing loss of life though negligence, along with a former director of the government’s civil protection agency. The July 23, 2018, fire swept through the seaside area of Mati, east of Athens, forcing residents into a chaotic attempt to escape — either by car through a dense forest or fleeing into the sea. The court in Athens ruled that the officials had failed to organize an orderly evacuation. The defendants were initially found guilty in a trial that concluded last year and not jailed, but a senior prosecutor challenged the verdict, leading to a retrial. Greece is battling an increasing number of serious wildfires annually, which are blamed by authorities on the effects of climate change.