Forestry station in Paphos forest to be powered by generator

The Stavros tis Psokas station in the Paphos forest is to be powered by a generator and supply by the electricity authority (EAC) to the site is to be discontinued, it was officially announced on Thursday.

A generator has already been moved to the location and an alternative source of electricity through an off-grid PV system is being examined, following the near-catastrophic fire in the Paphos forest earlier this week, the General Director of labour inspection Andreas Gregoriou told the state broadcaster CyBC.

“It is not possible to de-activate all EAC supply by cables through the forest, as this would create problems for the communities supplied enroute,” Gregoriou explained.

“The plan is to prioritise hot-spots and look for alternative ways to electrify those places, he continued, adding that an inventory of the most high-risk spots in the forest already exists.

“To this end, both the EAC and the ministry of transport have been updated and are reviewing the information.

“The replacement of EAC cables with ‘alternative’ setups will be done regardless of the findings of the official fire services investigation.”

Speaking in his newly created role of coordinator of fire prevention services, Gregoriou noted that the cooperation, training, preparedness and professionalism of all service staff, is excellent.

“Of course this does not take away the need to make more improvements but the upgrades to equipment over the past two to three years are also paying off,” he said.

Pressed to explain how come a solution was found for Stavros tis Psokas within two days, when the matter had been a bone of contention for years with the forestry department, Gregoriou added that “a heightened sense of danger” had pushed the matter to fruition.

“Increased population flight from rural areas which leaving unattended land at higher risk of fires, is another aspect of the problem that needs to be faced, and addressed in terms of prevention,” he concluded.