Three members of a family have been arrested in connection with the fire that claimed the lives of two firefighters, aged 23 and 44, in Zephyri, in the municipality of Fyli, western Attica, on Saturday morning (14 November). A third firefighter was injured during the operation and taken to hospital.

The arrests followed an investigation into the cause of the blaze at a derelict building on Katsantoni Street, where the family had reportedly been living on the ground floor. Investigators believe that residues from a wood-burning stove may have been discarded in the building’s stairwell, potentially triggering the fire.

The 34-year-old mother and her two daughters, aged 13 and 16, were arrested under the flagrante delicto procedure, while authorities are searching for the woman’s 44-year-old husband, the children’s father. The latest reports available on Sunday morning (15 November) have not confirmed his arrest.

Investigators examine discarded stove ashes as possible cause

Photographs taken inside the burned-out building reveal the conditions firefighters encountered during the operation, which ended with the deaths of two colleagues.

The Athens Fire Investigation Unit is examining the circumstances in which the blaze started and the subsequent structural failure that trapped firefighters inside the building.

Investigators discovered rubbish, plastics and other combustible materials at the scene. Evidence gathered so far, with assistance from the Zephyri Security Department of the Hellenic Police, suggests that the family had regularly disposed of combustion residues from a wood-burning stove in the stairwell.

The stove was reportedly used to heat the ground-floor premises where the family lived. Investigators believe the discarded material may have played a central role in starting the fire, although its precise cause has not yet been conclusively established.

The arrests were made following an assessment of the preliminary investigation findings. Authorities have not announced a final determination of criminal responsibility.

How the two firefighters died

Investigators are also examining whether the two firefighters died from smoke inhalation and asphyxiation or were fatally injured when structural elements of the building collapsed.

The alarm was raised at approximately 11.40am on Saturday, when the Fire Service Operations Centre received a report of a fire in the abandoned building on Katsantoni Street.

Twenty firefighters and six vehicles from Athens’ 10th, 6th and 12th Fire Stations were dispatched, alongside personnel from the 1st Special Disaster Response Unit (EMAK).

While firefighters were working inside the building to contain the flames, part of the structure gave way, trapping members of the rescue team.

Two firefighters were initially recovered unconscious and transferred by ambulance to Attikon Hospital. A third firefighter was rescued with injuries. The deaths of the 23-year-old and 44-year-old firefighters were confirmed shortly afterwards.

“They stepped onto the staircase and fell into the void”

Konstantinos Papantonis, president of the Panhellenic Firefighters’ Association, described the circumstances surrounding the fatal incident, visibly distressed by the loss of his colleagues.

He explained that, according to information he had received from firefighters at the scene, the building contained a spiral staircase with an opening leading to a basement filled with rubbish and burning materials.

“There was a spiral staircase, there was an opening, and underneath was a basement full of rubbish and fire. The colleagues stepped onto the staircase and fell through the opening. That is what I have been told. I do not know exactly where it happened or how accurate the information is. That is what most of the colleagues I spoke to told me,” he said.

He added that the firefighters became trapped in an extremely confined space, surrounded by flames, making escape impossible.

“The space was very small and they could not get back out. Everything was on fire,” Papantonis said.

Witness describes the emergency response

A resident of the area recalled hearing emergency vehicle sirens shortly before the arrival of firefighters and police.

“At around 11.30am we heard sirens. We went outside and saw a fire in an abandoned building. The firefighters arrived, and then we saw police officers and ambulances. Obviously something happened to some firefighters inside, but we do not know the details because they would not let us approach,” the witness said.

“We did not see a very large fire. We saw smoke. The building used to be an aluminium workshop, making doors and other aluminium products.”

The resident also described the distress of emergency personnel as the operation unfolded.

“The emergency services arrived. They were anxious, the firefighters were crying,” the witness added, explaining that bystanders had been kept away from the building and could not see exactly what had happened inside.

Civil Protection Minister pays tribute to the victims

Greek Minister for Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Evangelos Tournas expressed his condolences following the deaths of the two firefighters.

“Today, the Fire Service family is mourning two of its own, who lost their lives in the line of duty,” he said.

“My thoughts are with their families and loved ones. I extend to them my deepest and most sincere condolences.”

The minister also wished the injured firefighter a swift and full recovery.

Internal investigation ordered as Fire Service mourns

In an official statement, the Hellenic Fire Service described Saturday as an exceptionally difficult day for the organisation.

“Two more of our personnel have lost their lives while responding to a fire in a building on Katsantoni Street, in the Fyli area of Attica,” the statement said.

The service paid tribute to the two firefighters, saying they had died in the line of duty while protecting human life, property and the environment.

The Fire Service leadership extended its condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims and announced that a sworn administrative investigation would be conducted into the circumstances of the tragedy.

On the orders of the Fire Service Chief, flags at all Fire Service premises will fly at half-mast as a mark of mourning.

The investigation into the cause of the fire and the circumstances of the firefighters’ deaths remains ongoing.