The state of readiness of the Republic of Cyprus in view of the 2026 fire season, with an emphasis on preventive measures, the operational capacity of the Services involved, the adequacy of personnel, means and equipment and the pending issues that require immediate promotion, will be of concern today to the parliamentary committee on the Interior.
State Services and Departments have taken various actions within the framework of their responsibilities to strengthen the field of fire prevention and preparation of local authorities, while measures have been taken and resources have been provided for better preparation for fire suppression purposes. The implementation of the actions began early this year, with the aim of preparing the Services as best as possible, especially after the appointment of the temporary Coordinator for Fires.
The Fire Service visited the communities and in cooperation with the community councils determined the radius for the cleanups and the creation of fire zones, so that the funds allocated by the Ministry of the Interior would be allocated in a targeted manner and in the right way.
Also, the Civil Defense made visits to all communities and proceeded with the community leaders to update the "Polyvios" Plan for the possibility of evacuating residential areas in the event of fires, based on the individual needs and characteristics of each village.
In addition, the earth pushers and the tankers were placed on alert in various places, so that there is a faster response and reinforcement of the other firefighting means. In addition, the Early Warning System of the Population – CY-Alert has been operating since the beginning of June, as an additional and immediate tool for timely informing the population in emergencies.
Ministry of Interior
1. Granting of credits totalling €3 million to Community Service Clusters for the execution of the necessary works for the cleaning or cultivation of abandoned agricultural land or other areas and/or necessary pruning within a radius of 200 meters around the residential areas of the communities.
2. Securing credits of €1.2 million for the placement of earth forwarders and tankers which are on alert at strategic points in the districts of Larnaca, Limassol and Paphos.
3. Increase in the percentage of the subsidy of the communities for the purchase of a single-cabin fire truck from 50% to 80% from May 2025. Since then, 54 municipalities have approved requests.
4. Publication of a Decree of the Minister of the Interior on 24/04/2026 to prohibit the use of tools that cause sparks in the countryside when weather conditions favour the spread of fire.
5. Revision of the method of compensation for the owners of private vehicles/machinery that assist in extinguishing fires, in order to make the terms of compensation more attractive and to solve the problem of their non-response.
6. Substantial contribution to the preparation of the "Law on Specialized Volunteers".
7. Submission on March 13, 2026 of the Civil Protection Bill to the House of Representatives.
District Administrations
1. Deforestation of grass from road supports and cleaning of rural roads.
2. Informing communities of their obligations regarding measures to prevent fires.
3. Signing agreements with contractors for the placement of land forwarders and tankers, which are on standby at strategic points in the districts of Larnaca, Limassol and Paphos.
4. Registration of fire trucks of the District Administrations that have a water tank and a fire pump as "firefighting and/or other use", so that they can safely assist in extinguishing fires.
5. Keeping a Register of Volunteer Communities and gradually equipping volunteers with firefighting uniforms and gear.
Plans to evacuate residential areas have changed
The Civil Defense proceeded to update the "Polyvios" Plan, modernizing the plans for the evacuation of residential areas. At the same time, the Active Game Service participates more actively in the prevention and extinguishing of rural and forest fires, carrying out patrols in the countryside on a 24-hour basis, while it has 32 single-cabins equipped with a water sprinkler. For its part, the Fire Brigade proceeded to staff five Rural Stations on a 24-hour basis (one in each province), was reinforced with cameras to monitor the countryside, while it also created a special team with drones.
Civil Defense
1. Update of the "Polyvios" Plan, in consultation with the community councils and after on-site visits to all communities.
2. Conduct seven evacuation exercises in the period May – June and inform all communities about the procedures to be followed in case of evacuation.
3. Operation of the Public Warning System – CY-Alert from June 2.
4. Creation of communication groups with community leaders and members of community councils to send group messages from the Coordination Center in case of emergency, while keeping a record of the actions of the Civil Defence.
5. Concession of 39 new wireless communication devices to high-risk communities for the purpose of seamless communication.
Hunting Service
1. Active participation in the prevention and extinguishing of agricultural and forest fires, carrying out patrols in the countryside on a 24-hour basis.
2. Indicatively, in 2025, more than 300 calls from the Fire Service and the Department of Forests were responded to for assistance in extinguishing forest or rural fires.
3. Detection and extinguishing in the very early stages of at least 25 fires throughout Cyprus, without the need for the involvement of other Services.
4. It has 32 single-cabin fire trucks equipped with a water tank with a capacity of 500 to 600 liters and equipped with a water sprinkler.
Fire Service
1. Creation of E.S.K.E.P.Y. (National Coordination Center for Fire Service Operations).
2. Installation of tanks for water supply (56,000 liters).
3. Formation of Fire Prevention Teams to provide advice to communities.
4. Aircraft.
5. Installation of cameras in the districts of Nicosia, Limassol and Larnaca.
6. Recruitment of 60 members to staff Rural Stations (nationwide).
7. Water drilling fire extinguishing water spout control.
8. Training of volunteer groups (400 people).
9. Award of tender for electro-optical media in industrial areas and energy center.
10. Drones Team Mode.
11. Staffing of five Rural Stations on a 24-hour basis (one in each province).
12. Use of meteorological data received daily by the Department of Meteorology for better and timely coordination of the Departments/Services.
Investment in human resources by the Department of Forests
1. Implementation of alert programs for forest employees.
2. Establishment and operation of the Forest Fire Brigade.
3. Staff training.
4. Maintenance of the fleet of fire trucks and other machinery.
5. Enlightenment campaign for the prevention of forest fires.
6. Coordination between Services/bodies involved in forest firefighting.
7. Organization of the large-scale field exercise "Hephaestus 2026" on May 19.
8. Construction and maintenance of fire infrastructure within state forests, such as fire lookouts, water tanks, water spouts, helipads and fire safety systems.
9. Vegetation management – cutting grass on roads located within state forests.
10. Preparation and sending of letters to the other competent Services for taking fire protection measures.
