Island Fires

One October night, some days after a three-day fire had struck Sikinos, a gale force wind from the north hit the island of Ios, its closest neighbour. A blaze at the foot of a mountain not far from the hilltop village became an inferno ravaging its way towards people’s homes. For first timers like myself, it was an awesome sight and thoughts immediately went to my camera then not at hand. A dash up the hill got me to my door, the key entering first time in the dark. I stumbled up the narrow path towards the heat forgetting the torch in my haste. With autumn rains still to arrive, the dryness in the vegetation caused immediate combustion with clouds of heavy smoke. The intensity brought contrasts of visual beauty. The day after came with the chance to examine the damage. Where goats had been feeding lay ash covered terraces and burnt stone walls, a collapsed young olive tree was just one of the many casualties.

A blaze at the foot of a mountain not far from the hilltop village became an inferno ravaging its way towards people’s homes.