Greek shipowner Panos Laskaridis has boosted his credentials as one of the country’s biggest benefactors by donating €1m ($1.17m) worth of aid to mitigate losses from a recent wave of forest blazes.
The funds will also help battle future fires.
The aid is to flow through the Aikaterini Laskaridis Foundation (ALF), founded in 2007 by Panos and his late wife Marilena, who died six years ago.
This is the largest private donation known after a wave of blazes destroyed hundreds of thousands of hectares of land across the country, including some of Athens' northern outskirts.
On Friday, the country's state-run central bank said it would disburse €5m from its reserves to assist the rebuilding effort.
The ALF intends to split its relief evenly between the Greek fire service and afflicted regions, treasurer Susannah Laskaridi, Panos’ daughter, told TradeWinds.
The idea is to go through public authorities to help cover immediate material needs rather than forking out cash or checks.
The ALF is already sounding out fire service officials for material and equipment in short supply. Local communities destroyed by the flames are to obtain power generators, fuel to run them and provisions to feed cattle and animals.
“Our emphasis is on helping afflicted areas outside of Attica [greater Athens],” Laskaridi said.
A particular trouble spot is the region of Evia in central Greece, where more than 200,000 hectares of highly inflammable pine forest were destroyed earlier this month.
This represents nearly half the surface that went up in flames across the entire country so far this year.
Donations flow in
Laskaridis’ donation comes just a few weeks after the airing of controversial statements by the shipowner, which public opinion saw as insulting to the country’s government and ultimately led to his resignation from the Union of Greek Shipowners (UGS).
However, the ALF has been making large-scale donations long before its founder’s recent public relations disaster.
During a previous wave of fires in 2007, the foundation helped restock school libraries and set up supplementary classes. More recently, during the Covid-19 pandemic, it donated more than 600,000 reusable flasks to primary schools.
However, the ALF's charitable causes accelerated notably in recent weeks. In July, the foundation donated a general support vessel to the Greek navy. This is the third ship that the ALF has contributed to the country's armed forces in recent years.
The ship has a displacement of 4,426 gross tonnes and is equipped with a DP2 dynamic positioning system. Featuring electric propulsion and two bridges, it is suitable to serve as an operating command centre.
