August 15 – Celebration and Remembrance: Let Us Not Forget the Fire Victims

August 15 – Celebration and Remembrance: Let Us Not Forget the Fire Victims

Today, August 15, Orthodoxy celebrates the Assumption of the Virgin Mary – one of the most important days of the year. Most families celebrate, gather around tables, exchange wishes and smile.

However, in many burned villages of the Limassol Mountains, today is a silent day.

For the fire victims, the holiday has turned into a day of silence and pain:

🏚 They no longer have their home. Where there was once warmth, now there is only ash and skeletons of walls.

🐾 They no longer have their dogs and cats. Thousands of animals – domestic and productive – were burned alive in the flames, often trapped in their yards and pens.

🌳 They cannot feast with a view of the nature they loved. From their windows, instead of green, they see black earth, burnt trees, and a landscape that bears witness to the horror of the last few days.

🚶‍♂️ They cannot walk in their village and observe life around them. The streets are full of ashes, the air smells of burning, and silence has replaced the sounds of nature.

These people are not just “fire victims”. They are our neighbors, relatives, friends. They lost homes, animals, memories and the environment that gave them life and identity.

Their psychological ordeal does not end with the extinguishing of the fire – it begins there.

Scientific studies show that fire victims often suffer for years from post-traumatic stress, depression, insecurity and health problems from inhaling smoke and toxic substances.

💔 The animals that were burned are not just numbers. Every dog, cat, goat or bird had its own life and meaning for the person who cared for it. Their images, terrified in the flames, will remain etched in the minds of those who saw them.

🌱 The nature that was lost will not be the same again for decades. Olive trees, vines, pines and oaks that took centuries to grow were destroyed in a few hours. Biodiversity has decreased, floods and erosion threaten villages, and the ecological wound is deep.

Today, as we celebrate, let us keep them in our thoughts.

Let us remember that solidarity is not just a momentary, but a long-term commitment.

May the Virgin Mary give strength to those affected by the fires and enlighten all of us, so that we can protect our land, demand responsibility and not let this tragedy be forgotten.

✊ Sign so it never happens again:

🔗 https://chng.it/f5wMmJ7ZSk

📢 Send it to as many people as you can — relatives, friends, colleagues — and ask them to sign.

Only united can we demand change and protection for our country.