Endless thriller in Valtonera, Amyntaio, Florina: The sinkholes “swallow” the houses

Valtonera. A colony 12 kilometers from Amyntaio, Florina, but overmuch closer—just 1,800 meters from the PPC (Public Power Corporation) excavation successful the area. Like different villages and settlements successful the portion (Anargyroi, Pedino, Rodonas, Fanos), it was struck by a large landslide astatine the excavation 8 years ago. Since then, successive reports from six liable technological agencies person classified it arsenic unsafe to unrecorded in, peculiarly the country called the “red zone,” which runs astir vertically done the village, “cutting it successful half.”

A colony where, since June 10, 2017, erstwhile the monolithic landslide occurred—the strongest of its benignant successful Europe adjacent an progressive lignite mine, according to Professor Efthymios Lekkas—the lives of the residents person changed. Most of the 170 residents chose, whether retired of necessity oregon sentiment, to proceed surviving successful their village, but they bash truthful astatine utmost risk. They unrecorded successful constant, harrowing insecurity, virtually connected apical of fissures. Houses with cracks of varying sizes proceed to grow, with residents feeling astatine immoderate infinitesimal that the crushed is slipping beneath their feet. Every location is affected; nary stay intact.

Some were forced to leave, either to adjacent but safer villages, oregon sent their children oregon aged parents to Thessaloniki oregon different large cities portion they stayed behind. Those who stay unrecorded successful fearfulness of further landslides, caller damage, oregon adjacent threats to their lives. The imaginable interaction of an earthquake oregon a dense downpour is not adjacent discussed. Yet, their repeated appeals for urgent relocation procedures person inactive not been heeded.

Their fears are not unfounded. A caller lawsuit proves it. As colony nonmigratory Sofoklis Manos reports, aft respective days of dense rain, connected the greeting of October 7, villagers woke to find a 13-meter-long, 3-meter-high retaining partition successful the mediate of the colony had collapsed, conscionable a enactment distant from the schoolhouse autobus stop. Two of the 8 children inactive surviving successful the colony are Mr. Manos’ own.

Findings by Lekkas and Five Other Agencies
Many scientists hold with the villagers’ concerns. From the start, the technological community’s mobilization was strong, but seemingly not capable to shingle the cardinal government. On November 7, 2017, 5 months aft the landslide, Professor Efthymios Lekkas, adept successful Dynamic Tectonics, Applied Geology & Natural Disaster Management (now president of OASP), warned successful penning that buildings successful the country helium designated arsenic the “red zone” (nearly 1/3 of the village) should beryllium gradually evacuated for information reasons and residents instantly relocated.

By precocious August 2018, the Institute of Geology and Mineral Exploration (IGME) besides deemed one-third of the colony unfit for habitation. Six reports present constituent to the aforesaid conclusion: expropriation of onshore and relocation of residents. Yet, contempt these recommendations, the cardinal authorities remains inactive. Over 8 years, section and nationalist media occasionally item the issue, yet the prolonged inaction remains dangerous.

“We continuously pass them. We indispensable leave; it’s unsafe to unrecorded here. There is adjacent a hazard of tragedy.” Words from S. Manos, echoing the “cry of anguish” for authoritative inaction. Lawyer Ariadni Nouka adds: “The illness of the retaining partition 10 days agone confirms, successful the clearest way, the ongoing and superior hazard that persists successful the Valtónera area. This underscores the request for contiguous authorities intervention, particularly wrong the designated ‘red zone,’ wherever the crushed remains unstable and quality lives exposed.”

The informing from Professor Efthymios Lekkas since 2017

The Historic Judicial Decision
Some advancement appeared earlier this year, erstwhile archetypal the Amyntaio Municipal Council and past the Western Macedonia Regional Council unanimously voted for compulsory expropriation. The lawsuit was past transferred to Athens and the cardinal administration, but nary developments person occurred, not adjacent aft the caller partition collapse.

However, determination were promising developments successful the judicial domain. The Athens Court of First Instance, past April, recognized the information of remaining successful Valtónera, peculiarly wrong the “red zone.” It acknowledged that the fissures and onshore subsidence successful the colony were owed to changes successful the hydrogeological authorities caused by over-extraction of groundwater by the PPC for excavation safety. Compensation of €3.35 cardinal was awarded to 31 residents who sued for motivation and worldly damages.

Regarding geological and hydrogeological data, the Court accepted studies from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and the University of Athens, proving 4 points:

A) Significant driblet successful groundwater levels (>50 m)
B) Formation of a “cone of depression” extending up to 2 km, including the settlement
C) Connection of fissures and subsidence to mining extraction
D) Exclusion of seismic oregon tectonic enactment arsenic the cause

Regarding societal and residential impacts, the Court recognized that the full colony is successful an unsafe surviving information and noted the beingness of a “red zone” requiring evacuation.

“…The Valtónera colony is successful contiguous information owed to crushed fissures. Given the information of the ungraded and ongoing fissures and cracks, immoderate further events, specified arsenic a insignificant earthquake, could origin extended harm oregon illness to already stressed buildings, threatening crushed stability. Therefore, residing successful Valtónera and cultivating the fields is unsafe,” the determination states.

The properties of the plaintiffs person efficaciously mislaid their usage and worth owed to these phenomena, with PPC held liable arsenic a root of elevated biology risk. Compensation was awarded to the 31 plaintiffs for the motivation and worldly harm suffered, making the determination 1 of the astir well-documented and important regarding biology harm successful Greece, mounting a ineligible precedent for accountability of ample agencies toward section communities.

Ariadni Nouka
Speaking astir the decision, the lawyer representing the residents, Ariadni Nouka, told Proto Thema that it “already afloat recognizes the work of the parties astatine fault, the danger, and awarded compensation to the residents. The world is present legally and scientifically acknowledged.

The question present is: volition we hold for lives to beryllium mislaid earlier authorities act? We expect the contiguous activation of the competent authorities to instrumentality the indispensable protection, prevention, and restoration measures. Protecting quality beingness and national information is simply a superior work of the State.”

The lawsuit present proceeds to a 2nd instance.

Additionally, a suit from 2021 by the Municipality of Amyntaio against each liable parties is ongoing, starring to adept assessments and the consolidation of the six studies. After a postponement, the proceedings is acceptable for March 2026, with the PPC medication held accountable.

On the left: Ariadni Nouka, lawyer representing the residents; connected the right: Dimitra Katsouridou, a colony kid who mislaid her show but, with immense spot and willpower, entered the Guinness Book of Records.

The Village’s History
Valtónera is simply a beauteous village, and its residents are arrogant of it, contempt being forced to permission owed to unavoidable circumstances. It lies successful the halfway of a plain that was marshland until the precocious 1950s, hence the village’s name. The marsh was the remnant of an past lake, explaining the unstable soil. Prehistoric settlements developed on its banks, including 1 connected the colony outskirts dating to the Early Bronze Age.

In these harsh conditions, Pontic refugees settled successful 1922, engaging successful agriculture and livestock farming, particularly aft the marsh was drained and arable onshore revealed.

In 2003, Valtónera gained planetary fame acknowledgment to Dimitra Katsouridou, a unsighted colony kid who, with bonzer determination, entered the Guinness Book of Records with a postulation of 8,514 pencil sharpeners gathered implicit 11 years, the largest postulation successful the world. Sadly, she passed distant astatine 46 successful February 2020. Today, Valtónera returns to nationalist attraction arsenic a lawsuit survey of authorities negligence and indifference toward the needs of distant communities.

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