Yesterday's fire, caused by the firing range, was the last straw in Kalo Chorio, Agia Anna and Psevda. The three communities of the province of Larnaca, together with Pyrga and Mosfiloti, have been shouting for many years about the effects of the operation of the Kalo Chorio Firing Range, after a number of very serious incidents were recorded that endangered the lives of many people in the area. They were never heard, however, by any government.
But this time they want to be heard. They want the firing range to be closed immediately, which endangered their life's labours yesterday. This is what residents were discussing in the café of Psevdas on Tuesday morning. Philenews was at the scene and recorded their testimonies, with some of them describing shocking incidents where projectiles ended up in an area stadium and a school.
''The situation yesterday was tragic, tragic... We also got up to grow from our sparks to escape and avoid danger. We went to Mosfiloti and Pyrga", said Paraskevas Erotokritou, noting that this is not only this year. "We have the same problem every year in the summer. Normally, the firing range should leave because it is a dangerous area in Kalo Chorio, Agia Anna and Psevtas. What if I tell you that missiles fall on the field when the players play football? This happened 3-4 years ago. The projectile fell in the locker room. Is it dangerous, do we want a priest to tell us? Well and they escaped then. Fortunately, he did not cry out to kill anyone. Come on, say it's over, a missile fell but we escaped, but yesterday's was a tragedy. At noon, no one is going to detonate explosives. Mari happened at 5:15 in the morning and you saw what a situation it created, not in the middle of the day. Do you go at 12:40 to destroy ammunition?", he asked. Asked to say what they are asking of the Government, he replied: "But what we are going to ask for is being heard? They accused the minister and the President yesterday, but in the conversation that speaks a voice crying in the wilderness." Asked if he expects those who made the decision to be held accountable, he said they will catch a soldier and accuse and punish him. But the problem is that the evil does not happen. Oh, it happened and then...".
Next to him was Savvas Petrou who wanted to talk and say only one thing as he told us. "Leave the firing range that our area. It creates problems for us. It's the fires, they also escape missiles. Last time he went outside the school of Pyrgi. This happened a few years ago. Should we be in danger? To leave our area," he said.Giorgos Olympiou from Psevas took his wife and they left the village in a hurry when they were notified that they had to evacuate. "We went to Dali, I have a married son, where were we supposed to go? We were upset, but what were we going to do?" he asked. He also said that the best thing would be for the Firing Range to leave the area and especially for there to be no such activities of the National Guard. "They have to be careful. Once fires were lit in the meadows and we were scared because my house was further down. This came to my mind in the last few days because behind my house there are pine trees," he noted.
Kostas Vassiliou, like most of the inhabitants of Psevvas, chose to stay in the village. "We listened to the fire brigades, but we didn't leave the village. The fire was half a kilometer away. Not only does the firing range have other things. Since April, they have been issuing a circular that they must clean the plots to avoid fires. Neither the Community Council nor anything is done, in gross terms and houses are giame", he said, noting that if yesterday the direction of the wind had been different, the fire could not have been easily extinguished. Asked if the desire is to remove the firing range, he replied that yes.
He also noted that in the 1990s there was again a large fire in the area caused by the firing range. " Projectiles fall behind the mountain and eventually find them," he added.
