ATHENS (Reuters) - Greek Civil Protection Minister Nikos Toskas resigned on Friday in the wake of a wildfire last month that killed 88 people and led to widespread criticism of the government for its handling of the disaster.

FILE PHOTO: A volunteer throws water through a hose as a wildfire burns in the town of Rafina, near Athens, Greece, July 23, 2018. REUTERS/Costas Baltas

Toskas had previously offered to quit after the July 23 blaze in the small seaside town of Mati east of Athens, but Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras refused to accept his resignation.

The minister reiterated his desire to step aside again on Friday during a meeting with Tsipras, in a move that the main political opposition said came too late to appease the public.

“This natural disaster, and the loss of so many people in Mati, overwhelms my desire to continue. This is something I had stated publicly from the first moment,” Toskas, a retired army general, said in a statement.

Pressure has been growing on the government, which is trailing the conservative opposition in opinion polls, at a time when it had hoped to extricate Greece from years of bailouts prompted by its debt crisis and reap the political benefits.

There have been recriminations over what went wrong and led to the deaths of dozens in Mati, where hundreds of people were trapped by towering walls of flames when they tried to flee.

Many jumped into the sea to survive but others died, either in their cars or when they were cornered on the edge of steep cliffs by the rapidly advancing inferno.

Last Friday Tsipras said he took political responsibility for the deadly wildfire amid accusations that his government had failed to protect lives and to apologize for the disaster.

Seeking to deflect public anger, he told his ministers he was conflicted over whether the authorities had done everything right in response to the disaster.

“Responsibilities have a name: Alexis Tsipras. He and his government do not have the courage to assume them 11 days after the tragedy,” the conservative New Democracy party said after the minister’s resignation.

Tsipras’s office quickly responded, accusing the conservative party of trying to score political gains from a national tragedy.

The death toll rose to 88 on Friday when a 35-year-old woman died from her injuries. Her six-month old baby, the youngest victim, had died in her arms from smoke inhalation as they tried to escape the flames.

Greek authorities say they suspect the fire was set deliberately. Arson is thought to be a frequent cause of forest fires in Greece, a crude method to clear the way for potential development.

Toskas’s duties have been assigned to Panos Skourletis, the country’s interior minister.</s>ATHENS, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Greek Civil Protection Minister Nikos Toskas resigned on Friday in the wake of a wildfire last month that killed 88 people, the Prime Minister's office said.

Toskas had previously offered to resign after the July 23 disaster in the small seaside town of Mati east of Athens, but Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras refused to accept it.

Toskas reiterated his desire to resign again on Friday during a meeting with Tsipras, the statement said.

There have been recriminations over what went wrong and led to the deaths of dozens in Mati where hundreds of people were trapped by towering walls of flames in their attempts to flee.

Many jumped into the sea to survive but others died, either in their cars or when they were cornered on the edge of steep cliffs by the rapidly advancing inferno.

In a statement, Toskas said: "This natural disaster, and the loss of so many people in Mati, overwhelms my desire to continue. This is something I had stated publicly from the first moment.

"I have strived all my life to defend this country and its citizens," Toskas, a retired army general, added.

The death toll rose to 88 on Friday when a 35-year-old woman died from her injuries. Her six-month old baby, the youngest victim, had died in her arms from smoke inhalation as they tried to escape the flames.

Greek authorities say they suspect the fire was set deliberately. Arson is thought to be a frequent cause of forest fires in Greece, a crude method to clear the way for potential development.

Toskas's duties have been assigned to Panos Skourletis, the country's interior minister.</s>ATHENS, Greece >> Greece’s public order minister resigned today over the deadly forest fire that killed at least 88 people in a seaside area near Athens last week, after spending days defending the way authorities had handled the disaster.

ATHENS, Greece >> Greece’s public order minister resigned today over the deadly forest fire that killed at least 88 people in a seaside area near Athens last week, after spending days defending the way authorities had handled the disaster.

A government statement said Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras met with Nikos Toskas and accepted his resignation.

In a tweet after the meeting, Tsipras thanked Toskas for his “courage” in stepping down. “I warmly thank (him) for the honesty and dedication he displayed during the discharge of his duties,” Tsipras added.

Toskas — and other government officials — came under intense criticism from Greek opposition parties over authorities’ response to the devastating fire at the seaside resort of Mati, and for his assertion in a press conference that, despite considerable soul-searching, he had not discerned any major errors in how the emergency was handled.

Critics focused on the absence of any official evacuation effort for residents before the flames reached Mati, on police allegedly allowing traffic diversions that sent motorists into deadly fire zone, and on an allegedly delayed announcement of the first deaths.

Toskas also initially suggested that arsonists could be to blame for the fire, although later indications suggested negligence by somebody trying to burn garden waste.

Earlier today, the government said authorities will start demolishing dozens of illegal fences and other structures in the wider Athens region next week in a crackdown on structures built without permits.

Greek officials are claiming that such structures were a major contributing factor to the wildfire’s high death toll.

Environment Minister Giorgos Stathakis told Greek radio channel 24/7 that 61 structures, mainly fencing, will be removed at sites on beaches, streams and areas earmarked for reforestation in several regions of Attica.

The Mati blaze was the deadliest in decades, in a hot, dry country where summer wildfires are a constant major hazard.

Hundreds of people fled to beaches, but even there the flames and choking smoke from the wildfire forced many to swim out to sea despite gale-force winds. Many survivors spent hours in the water until they were rescued by the coast guard, fishing boats and other boats. Several drowned.

Coroner Ilias Bogiokas said the wildfire was so hot that “there was almost nothing left” of many of the bodies.

“For the bodies to be in this state, with full carbonization and with parts often turned to ashes … the temperatures must have been very high in a very short period of time,” he told The Associated Press. “Whatever happened, happened in minutes.”

One more woman died today of her wounds from the Mati wildfire, yet 11 days after the fire the exact death toll was still unclear, with figures diverging between coroners and the fire department.

On July 27, coroners announced they had performed autopsies on the remains of 86 people. In addition, one more person died that day in a hospital and another woman died in hospital on today. On July 30, coast guard divers recovered the body of a man from the sea off the coast of the decimated resort area, which would bring the number of dead to 89.

The fire service, however, which has been issuing the official death toll, put the number of dead today at 88, including two unidentified, unclaimed bodies and five people who died in hospitals.

Neither the coroners’ office nor the fire department could explain the discrepancy.

Greek state ERT TV said the woman who died today was the 35-year-old mother of a six-month-old baby that died in the fire and the wife of a fireman who fought the blaze.</s>Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras accepted the resignation of Civil Protection Minister Nikos Toskas on Friday, a statement from his office said.

REUTERS: Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras accepted the resignation of Civil Protection Minister Nikos Toskas on Friday, a statement from his office said.

Toskas had previously offered to resign in the wake of a devastating wildfire which left 88 confirmed dead on July 23, but Tsipras refused to accept it.

Toskas reiterated his desire to resign again on Friday during a meeting with the Prime Minister, since the 'emergency situation' had eased, the statement said.</s>(Reuters) - Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras accepted the resignation of Civil Protection Minister Nikos Toskas on Friday, a statement from his office said.

Toskas had previously offered to resign in the wake of a devastating wildfire which left 88 confirmed dead on July 23, but Tsipras refused to accept it.

Toskas reiterated his desire to resign again on Friday during a meeting with the Prime Minister, since the ‘emergency situation’ had eased, the statement said.</s>Greece’s civil protection minister has resigned over the government’s response to the wildfires last month that killed 88 people, according to the office of the prime minister, Alexis Tsipras. Tsipras was under pressure to sack members of his administration after the fires at the small coastal resort of Mati on 23 July, the deadliest in Greek history.

Nikos Toskas had previously offered to resign after the disaster in the small seaside town of Mati east of Athens, but Tsipras refused to accept it. On Friday, Toskas reiterated his desire to resign during a meeting with Tsipras, the statement said.

There have been recriminations over what led to the deaths of dozens of people in Mati, east of Athens, where hundreds of people were trapped by towering walls of flame while attempting to flee. Many jumped into the sea to survive, but others died either in their cars or when they were trapped on the edge of steep cliffs by the rapidly advancing inferno.

In a statement, Toskas said: “This natural disaster, and the loss of so many people in Mati, overwhelms my desire to continue. This is something I had stated publicly from the first moment. I have strived all my life to defend this country and its citizens,” added Toskas, a retired army general

The death toll rose to 88 on Friday when a 35-year-old woman died from her injuries. Her six-month old baby, the youngest victim, had died in her arms from smoke inhalation as they tried to escape the flames.

Greek authorities say they suspect the fire was started deliberately. Arson is thought to be a frequent cause of forest fires in Greece, a crude method to clear the way for potential development.

Toskas’s duties have been assigned to Panos Skourletis, the country’s interior minister.</s>Interior Minister Panos Skourletis speaks during a handover ceremony in Athens on Saturday after being assigned the duties of Nikos Toskas, who resigned as alternate citizens’ protection minister following a public outcry over the handling of the deadly wildfires that ravaged eastern Attica on July 23. In his comments, Skourletis vowed to push ahead with a government crackdown on building without permits, which is seen as having played a role in the high death toll in the fires. "We must look into the long-standing crimes that have been committed," he said adding that the drive against illegal construction and the redesign of civil protection must be combined with an in-depth investigation into the July 23 operation. [Eurokinissi]</s>GREECE’S public order minister has resigned over the deadly forest fire that killed at least 87 people in a seaside area near Athens last week, after spending days defending the way authorities under his supervision handled the disaster.

A government statement said Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras met with Nikos Toskas and accepted his resignation.

In a tweet after the meeting, Mr Tsipras thanked Mr Toskas for his “courage” in stepping down. “I warmly thank (him) for the honesty and dedication he displayed during the discharge of his duties,” Mr Tsipras added.

Mr Toskas — and other government officials — came under intense criticism from Greek opposition parties over authorities’ response to the devastating fire at Mati, and for his assertion in a press conference that, despite considerable soul-searching, he had not discerned any major errors in how the emergency was handled.

Critics focused on the absence of any official evacuation effort for residents before the flames reached Mati, on police allegedly allowing traffic diversions that sent motorists into the burning area, and on an allegedly delayed announcement of the first deaths.

Mr Toskas had initially suggested that arsonists could be to blame for the fire, although later indications suggest negligence by somebody trying to burn garden trimmings.

Earlier this morning, the government said authorities will start demolishing dozens of illegal fences and other structures in the wider Athens region next week in a crackdown on building without permits that officials say were a major contributing factor to the high death toll.

Environment Minister Giorgos Stathakis told Greek radio channel 24/7 that 61 structures, mainly fencing, will be removed at sites on beaches, streams and areas earmarked for reforestation in several regions of Attica. The Mati blaze was the deadliest in decades, in a country where summer wildfires are a major hazard.

Hundreds of people fled to beaches, but even there the flames and choking smoke from the wildfire forced many to swim out to sea despite gale-force winds.

Many survivors spent hours in the water until they were rescued by the coast guard, fishing boats and other boats. Several drowned.

Coroner Ilias Bogiokas said the temperatures of the wildfire were such that “there was almost nothing left” of many of the bodies.

“For the bodies to be in this state, with full carbonisation and with parts often turned to ashes … the temperatures must have been very high in a very short period of time,” he said. “Whatever happened, happened in minutes.”

Eleven days after the fire, the exact death toll was still unclear, with figures diverging between coroners and the fire department.

On July 27, coroners announced they had performed autopsies on the remains of 86 people, while one more person died that day in a hospital.

Three days later on July 30, coast guard divers recovered the body of a man from the sea off the coast of the decimated resort area, which would bring the number of dead to 88.

The fire service, however, which has been issuing the official death toll, put the number of dead on Thursday night at 87, including two unidentified, unclaimed bodies and four people who died in hospitals.

Neither the coroners’ office nor the fire department could explain the discrepancy.</s>ATHENS, Greece (AP) - The Latest on the fallout from Greece's forest fires (all times local):

Greece's public order minister has resigned in the aftermath of last week's deadly forest fires near Athens that killed at least 87 people.

People swim at a beach in Rafina, east of Athens, Wednesday, Aug. 1, 2018, ten days after the the wildfire. The bodies of 76 people killed by Greece's deadliest wildfire in decades have been identified, authorities said Tuesday, as forensic experts kept working to identify more remains recovered from the charred resort area. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

A government statement says Nikos Toskas' resignation has been accepted by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, with whom he met Friday.

The July 23 blaze ravaged the coastal Mati district northeast of Athens, fanned on by strong winds.

Greece's environment minister says authorities will start demolishing dozens of illegal constructions in the wider Athens region next week, in a crackdown on illegal building following the country's deadliest forest fire in decades.

Giorgos Stathakis told Greek radio channel 24/7 Friday that authorities would tear down 61 structures, mainly fencing, at sites on beaches, streams and areas earmarked for reforestation in several regions of Attica.

Government officials have blamed illegal construction for contributing to the July 23 disaster, when a fast-moving wildfire swept through a seaside resort near Athens, killing at least 87 people. But criticism has also mounted over how authorities responded to the blaze.

There is also confusion over the exact death toll, with figures diverging between coroners and the fire department.
Greek Civil Protection Minister Nikos Toskas resigns after a wildfire that killed 88 people and led to wide criticism of the government for its handling of the disaster.