Greek city donates firewood to population due to high energy prices

Faced with the explosion of energy prices in Greece, the authorities of the municipality of Glyfada, about 20 kilometers from the center of Athens, began distributing free firewood to its inhabitants to face the winter.

The Prefecture of Glyfada launched the initiative about 15 days ago and distributes it twice a week.

Close to 3,000 families in the city have already benefited, and 14,000 people have signed up through a platform created by the city hall, said Annie Kafka, deputy of the Civil Defense of the Prefecture of Glyfada.

“After many trees fell during a snowstorm in January, we decided not to recycle wood as industrial fuel, as we used to do,” Kafka told AFP.

Instead, the local government decided to cut firewood to “give it to families because of the energy crisis”.

In September, natural gas prices soared 332%, and many Greeks fear they won’t be able to heat their homes this winter. Furthermore, for six months, inflation has exceeded 10%, in a country that is still suffering the aftermath of a decade of financial crisis.

The authorities inform about the distribution by SMS. Residents can benefit from aid only once.

“We really need […]especially in this difficult year,” said Yiannis Dimitrakopoulos, a 75-year-old retiree who lives in Glyfada.

In September, the prefecture of Zografou, another suburb of Athens, also distributed firewood to its population.

The prefecture of Athens, a densely populated city that suffers from pollution, did not imitate the measure, citing the environmental problems it can cause.

During Greece’s financial sinking (2008-2018), many families chose to use firewood to heat their homes.

In many buildings, the heating was not even turned on, because residents could not pay the bills. As a result, the country’s main cities were enveloped in a thick fog.