Those killed in Mari blast to have streets named after them

The 13 men who died after the Mari blast will be honoured with streets, parks and squares named in their memory, Limassol municipality said on Monday.

The municipal council said that the “heroes” will be honoured in this manner to mark ten years since the blast claimed their lives.

The early morning blast on July 11, 2011 killed seven sailors and six firemen. It had been caused by munitions haphazardly stored at the Evangelos Florakis naval base in Mari for more than two years.

The munitions, stored in 98 containers, had been confiscated in 2009 from a Cyprus-flagged ship en route to Syria and were then stacked in an open space at the base and left exposed to the elements until the day of the explosion, despite repeated warnings about the risks.

In the aftermath of the blast former President Demetris Christofias appointed prominent lawyer Polys Polyviou to investigate the causes.

Polyviou found Christofias to be mainly responsible, while the respective foreign and defence ministers, Marcos Kyprianou and the late Costas Papacostas, were also found culpable. Christofias though, rejected the findings and accused Polyviou of overstepping his mandate.