08.03.2022
Some houses almost collapsed as a result of the continuous and accelerating landslide and were declared uninhabitable. Houses, gardens and pools are torn apart, walls and driveways crumble, roads are broken, twisted and impassable. The cause of destabilization is the accumulation of water in the bowels. The 2012 landslide began just after the extremely rainy winter of 2011-2012.
Since then, a long process of engineering surveys and battles has ensued over who is responsible for building on the site, with various vague promises of compensation. At least three home secretaries were embroiled in a dispute that was also debated in the House of Representatives.
In 2015, several property owners came together to form the Pissouri Housing Initiative Group (PHIG), with lawyer Georgia-Elina Zoe representing some of the owners.
She wrote to Interior Minister Nikos Nouris in January and one point raised noted that since borrowers are unable to pay both the monthly loan payment and the monthly rent they were forced to pay due to being unable to stay in their homes, loans have been terminated or suspended.
Georgia-Elina Zoe indicated that with ground stabilization and site restoration, it is possible that some residents will be able to return to their homes and repay their loans normally.
According to her, only some of the 22 buildings suffered irreparable damage.Most buildings are unusable due to disconnection from utilities (water, electricity, telecommunications) and the destruction of the surrounding area, and not the building itself. The owners will be able to return and renovate the property after the stabilization works are completed, so they will not lose their property. This will significantly reduce their financial losses.
“However, banks are interested in knowing the schedule so that they know when their customers can start repaying their loans again,” she said.
In addition, immediate measures must be taken to pump out water that accumulates due to heavy rains in order to protect infrastructure and property, which so far have not been damaged and can be repaired.
Ongoing work began on 27 January and will last seven months and includes the construction of a wall of long piles at the top of the landslide zone. It is aimed at protecting the area outside the landslide, but Georgia-Elina Zoe said it would do nothing to stabilize the affected area.
“It looks like the government is just trying to prevent the problem from expanding on the hill north and west of the landslide zone,” she said.
According to her, part of the village itself was also damaged this winter, two houses received an order to evacuate.
In his response to Zoe, the Minister said that work was underway on the site and, “At the same time, the Department of Public Works tender documents are being prepared for the construction of an embankment, which will be a counterweight to carry out instability at the foot of the landslide.It is expected that the announcement of the tender by the Department of Public Works will be made after the summer season, and the duration of the project will be two years.
He added that 22 private houses in Pissouri were declared uninhabitable, so the state, for humanitarian reasons, decided to finance their removal to a safe place. The search for other housing for resettlement is the responsibility of residents who, by decision of the Council of Ministers, will be provided with one-time material assistance.
However, the lawyer noted that she asked for clarification about the reference to a “one-time payment”, which she described as confusing because no such financial assistance had been received. Instead, the Council of Ministers decided to grant an annual deduction in December against the rent of about 1,800 euros per year.
“I’m afraid the banks won’t agree to a loan suspension if their borrowers receive relocation compensation from the government and never return to the home they took out the loan for, so that needs to be clarified.”
