The procedure for granting first aid to those affected by the fires of this July is progressing. As the Deputy Minister of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, Christos Triandopoulos, told the Athenian-Macedonian News Agency, in the next few days the cross-checking process will be started by a competent Working Group so that the first aid payments can proceed immediately.

As it became known from the Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, the deadline for submitting first aid applications on the arogi.gov.gr platform will be extended until August 31, so that all beneficiaries can submit, without hindering the process crossings and first aid disbursements.

“In the next few days, the cross-checking process will be started by a competent Working Group so that the first aid payments can proceed immediately. At the same time, as decided during the last meeting of the Governmental Committee for State Aid, the operation of the first aid platform arogi.gov.gr will be extended until the end of August, so that all beneficiaries can submit, without hindering the cross-checking process and first aid payments. The process, therefore, is progressing and continues normally, with the aim of the first aid, the first aid, reaching the citizens who were affected by the fires and who need it as soon as possible”, notes the Deputy Minister of Climate Crisis and Policy to APE-MPE Protection, Christos Triandopoulos.

In total, according to data from the Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, during the first week of operation of the arogi.gov.gr platform, up to Thursday August 10, 270 finalized applications corresponding to first aid of a total amount of 1.3 million were submitted . euro.

In the context of the implementation of state aid measures for the areas affected by the fires, the first aid scheme was activated through the arogi.gov.gr platform, which was opened on August 3. One of the basic conditions for the opening of the platform is the immediate execution of autopsies and records, so that citizens know – to a large extent having the relevant control sheet – that they are beneficiaries.

At the same time, with regard to the first aid against housing assistance, as announced by the Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, the milestone date by which assets were taken into account is changed to August 14, 2023, in order to take into account recent changes in real estate assets for owners of affected buildings.

In total, according to data from the Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, 790 autopsies and checks have been carried out on buildings and facilities damaged by the fires as the autopsies and recording process began immediately, from the ranks of the general secretariat of Natural Disaster Recovery and State Aid , in collaboration with the executives of the local government organizations, who were in the field from the first moment. Of these 790 cases, in all affected municipalities, 138 buildings are classified as dangerous for use (“red”), 243 are classified as temporarily – until they are repaired – unsuitable for use (“yellow”) and 409 are classified as suitable for use in need of minor repairs (“green”). It is noted that the scheme of first aid concerns the cases where the buildings have been classified as “yellow” or “red”, but also the cases of businesses with medium or large-scale damage.

It is noted that beneficiaries are those affected located in the regions of the regional units of East Attica and West Attica of the Attica region, the regional unit of Corinth of the Peloponnese Region, the Regional Unit of Boeotia of the Central Greece Region, the Regional Unit of Rhodes of the South Aegean Region, the Regional Unit Corfu of the Region of the Ionian Islands and the Regional Unit of Magnesia and Sporades of the Region of Thessaly, which were affected by the fires and have been declared in a state of civil protection emergency.

First Aid vs Grant

The amount of first aid aid against a grant amounts to 2,000 euros for serious material damage and 4,000 euros for very serious material damage. Beneficiaries are businesses and non-profit organizations – with the exception of agricultural holdings, i.e. those with exclusively agricultural activity – but including livestock holdings, which have been affected and are located in the above areas. In order to grant the aid, the data of the applications will be cross-checked with the data submitted to the relevant region for damage assessment and recording by the state aid committees. Also, the amount of the first aid received by each business is offset against the amount of the final grant, as this will be determined by the Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, after the damage has been recorded by the state aid committees of the Region.

First aid against housing assistance

The amount of first aid assistance against housing assistance amounts to 10,000 euros, for building facilities that have suffered severe damage that makes them dangerous for use or dangerously collapsed or completely damaged, or 5,000 euros, for building facilities that have suffered serious damage that makes them render them temporarily unfit for use. Beneficiaries are owners, by full or partial ownership, of professional building facilities, residences and other non-professional buildings, which suffered damage from the fires that occurred in the above areas, for the properties for which they are also going to submit applications for housing assistance.

According to the ministry, the amount of the first aid for housing that each owner receives is offset against the amount of the final housing assistance, as this will be determined by the Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection with a relevant decision on the demarcation and granting of housing assistance.

Both for the first aid against housing assistance, and for the first aid against a grant, in the event that the recipient of the aid submits a false declaration or does not submit a relevant file to the competent services or is not finally deemed a beneficiary or the amount to which he is entitled is less, it is provided the return of the total amount or the excess amount to the Greek State.