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Forest fires are a seasonal phenomenon in Greece, reoccurring annually and causing adverse impacts on both human-made and natural environments. Our case study focuses on the devastating fire that took place in July 2018 in the second-housing area of Mati, East Attica. In this research, we propose a simple and effective approach that combines the deformation trend obtained from the Permanent Scatterer Interferometry (PSI) analysis with the burn severity assessment aiming to identify and classify potential ground-burn hazard zones. To maximize the number of measuring points, we employ a weighted full-graph PSI approach. Additionally, we calculate the burn severity by comparing Sentinel-2 satellite images captured before and after the event. The resulting datasets are reclassified on a scale from 1 to 5, and the proposed equation yields the final product. Numerous high and very high hazard zones have been identified using this methodology. The research findings reveal the proximity between these hazard zones and the stream network. Overall, the proposed method offers valuable insights for the post-fire monitoring and management of urban and peri-urban landscapes in the affected areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forest fires constitute a major environmental and socioeconomic hazard in the Mediterranean. Weather and climate are among the main factors influencing forest fire potential. As fire danger is expected to increase under changing climate, seasonal forecasting of meteorological conditions conductive to fires is of paramount importance for implementing effective fire prevention policies. The aim of the current study is to provide high-resolution (∼9 km) probabilistic seasonal fire danger forecasts, utilizing the Canadian Forest Fire Weather Index (FWI) for the Attica region, one of the most fire-prone regions in Greece and the Mediterranean, employing the fifth-generation ECMWF seasonal forecasting system (SEAS5). Results indicate that, depending on the lead time of the forecast, both the FWI and ISI (Initial Spread Index) present statistically significant high discrimination scores and can be considered reliable in predicting above-normal fire danger conditions. When comparing the year-by-year fire danger predictions with the historical fire occurrence recorded by the Hellenic Fire Service database, both seasonal FWI and ISI forecasts are skilful in identifying years with a high number of fire occurrences. Overall, fire danger and its subcomponents can potentially be exploited by regional authorities in fire prevention management regarding preparedness and resources allocation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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