5 ex-officials were convicted over Greece’s deadliest fire but freed after paying fines

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — A court has convicted five former firefighters and disaster response officials over a 2018 wildfire outside Athens that killed more than 100 people. The fire that swept through the seaside town of Mati, east of Athens, was the deadliest in the country’s history. Residents and vacationers, many trapped in their cars, were killed as they tried to escape. The officials, including a former fire chief, received sentences of between 15 and 111 years. However, the presiding judge ordered that sentences could be served concurrently, and all five were freed after paying fines to cover their sentences.