What measures will be taken to deal with landslides?
CORFU. Local residents and frequent travellers in Moraitika and Paleokastritsa are calling for faster progress on the works and for a study of alternative routes. How does Deputy Regional Governor for Technical Works, Mamalos, respond?
Moraitika first, then Paleokastritsa. Heavy rainfall caused the embankments to swell and give way, blocking roads and raising concerns among passing drivers—especially residents of the surrounding areas who rely on these road arteries daily.
Deputy Regional Governor for Technical Services, Mamalos, responding to a related inquiry, stated that a work crew is already on site in Moraitika. However, the ongoing rainfall is worsening the condition of the slope, which remains at risk of further landslides, while drainage works are progressing with difficulty. According to his assessment, at least one month will be required to permanently resolve the problem.
In Paleokastritsa, just 24 hours after the second landslide—following an earlier incident in which a large rock had detached—the Paleokastritsa Business Association, in an official statement, stressed that the incident highlighted the danger of the existing road access, the area’s dependence on a single road axis, and the absence of an alternative escape route.
During the restoration works, the only access route to and from Paleokastritsa was cut off. At the same time, an ambulance had to reach the end of the area to attend to an emergency case, with the patient transfer carried out with police assistance as far as “La Grotta.”
As emphasised in the statement, the incident demonstrates that in emergency conditions, access for the competent services may become unsafe or even insufficient.
While thanking the Deputy Regional Governors and the Police for their immediate and coordinated response, the Association is calling for the launch of an institutional dialogue with a clear timetable and specific outcome, focusing on two directions:
A. An immediate, temporary solution to relieve and decongest traffic.
B. The preparation of a comprehensive study and a development-oriented upgrade of Paleokastritsa’s traffic system, based on updated data concerning visitor flows, hourly peak demand, parking loads, congestion points, the needs of residents and workers, as well as civil protection and healthcare requirements.
ELENI KORONAKI
