The investigation by the competent department of the Deputy Ministry of Shipping and the Police will show the exact causes that, combined with the extreme weather conditions, led the day before yesterday to the maritime accident and the death of Dimi Mavropoulos, whose boat crashed into the rocks of Cape Greco.
The deputy general director of the Deputy Ministry, Theodoulos Mesimeris, as he told "F", convened a meeting for today with competent officials of the Deputy Ministry, to coordinate the investigation in order to shed light on the circumstances under which the tragic event occurred.
It is noted that serious accidents with pleasure boats carrying up to 12 passengers are also handled by the Maritime Accident and Incident Investigation Sector of the Shipping Deputy Ministry.
In such cases, this Section comes up with technical findings, identifying the causes of a serious marine accident and comes up with a report, making recommendations to improve safety. At the same time, the Police is conducting its own investigation to identify any criminal responsibilities that exist from natural persons.
In this case, the competent ship inspectors of the Deputy Ministry, who are in a position to carry out the investigation, are called upon to answer the question of whether, in addition to the natural disaster, for which a warning had been made, there were other aggravating factors that led to the tragic loss of Dimi Mavropoulos.
Mr. Mesimeris, however, speaking to our newspaper yesterday early afternoon, said that the investigation into the circumstances under which the two boats crashed into the rocks has been ongoing since the first moment. "We have already mapped the sea area in relation to the debris," the official of the Deputy Ministry told us. "Together with the Department of Fisheries, we were there with boats," said Mr. Mesimeris.
"A while ago, the mapping of the image on the seabed was completed, which was done in coordination with the divers of the Fisheries Department," said the deputy general director of the Deputy Ministry, adding that he has already made arrangements with the Port and Maritime Police, but also with the owner of the ferry that was also destroyed after hitting the rocks.
Answering a question from "F", Mr. Mesimeris stated that such objects have not sunk to raise the issue of marine pollution. He said that an effort will be made immediately to remove the debris and that for this purpose "specialized floating equipment and a crane" will be used.
"The situation is under constant monitoring," concluded Mr. Mesimeris.
It should be noted that in the last 18 years, 17 souls have been lost in serious incidents on the coast of Cyprus related to marine leisure activities. Within the 10-year period, from 2020 until today, four such serious incidents have resulted in an equal number of deaths, while there is also one missing person.
The police investigation
The Police investigation is also underway. As it became known yesterday morning, members of the Ayia Napa police station were conducting examinations in relation to the three boats found in Cape Greco (two were destroyed) at the time of the rough seas.
Specifically, the examiners of the case were going to talk to the other two owners of the boats, one of which was dismantled, of the five people rescued by the Police and the KSED, as well as eyewitnesses. Videos that saw the light of day were expected to be put under the microscope, as well as testimonies with the aim of showing where the boats were moored and how they were swept away.
The exact causes of death of the 76-year-old businessman, Dimi Mavropoulos, will be ascertained during the legal autopsy on his body. Preliminary examinations show that Mavropoulos was trapped in the wreckage of his boat, unlike his 57-year-old wife and daughter who managed to jump into the sea and were picked up in time by the helicopters mobilized by the KSED.
The 57-year-old is being treated with fractures at the Famagusta Hospital in Paralimni. The deceased's daughter was discharged.
The side effects of the natural disaster
>> By 19:00 on Saturday afternoon, the telephone calls to the Electricity Authority of Cyprus for fault repair amounted to 18 thousand, while it is estimated that by the end of the day they reached 25 thousand. This was reported yesterday to the Cyprus News Agency by the EAC spokesperson, Christina Papadopoulou.
"Within an hour we received 3.500 thousand phone calls," he said. Ms. Papadopoulou said that despite the efforts of EAC crews and the repair of a large number of damages due to the bad weather, until yesterday at noon "in Nicosia, there are still too many small, local damages".
Damage to the network was caused, as he said, "by falling objects on the cables or due to falling piles". "The winds were so strong that piles were uprooted, and transformers were also burned because they were struck by lightning," he added. He also said that "various roofs of houses and photovoltaic panels were gone", which ended up on the EAC lines.
>> In yesterday's statements, the meteorological officer, Andreas Chrysanthou, stated that the Department of Meteorology had warned in time about the situation. Answering questions, he said that the Department had also issued a Sea Bulletin. "This, on yesterday (the day before yesterday), was issued. Characteristically, it was emphasized that the wave height in the area, in the east, was close to 2,5 meters," he said. He added that the Bulletin of the Seas also emphasized the orange warning that was in force, but also that storms were expected in the coastal areas, which would be accompanied by very strong gusts, up to 8 and 9 Beaufort.
>> The side effects of the day before yesterday's natural disaster are also attributed to a newsletter issued yesterday by the Fire Service. The spokesman, Andreas Kettis, informed, in particular, that "the Fire Service in the last 24 hours responded to 382 incidents, 21 fires, 359 special services and 2 false calls". Among the incidents are the two fires that broke out in the community of Avgorou (lightning fall) and Kokkinotrimithia (possible lightning fall), but also in incidents related to floods, water pumping and tree fall.
