On Sunday morning, August 11, a memorial service was held in the Church of Agios Georgios in Paralimni in memory of the victims of the Helios plane crash, timed to coincide with the 19th anniversary of the tragedy.
The plane crash occurred on August 14, 2005. Flight 522, flying from Larnaca to Prague, crashed as a result of cabin depressurization. All 121 people on board were killed.
The service was conducted by Bishop Kiti Nektarios. The event was attended by Deputy Minister of Tourism Kostas Koumis and DISI MEP Michalis Hadjipantela. In his speech, Hadjipantela noted that over the past 19 years, the pain from this tragedy remains indelible.
“August 14, 2005 was a dark day when 121 souls left this world. 19 years have passed, but the wounds do not heal, and the pain remains with the families and friends of the victims. We must remember that memory is a form of resistance in the face of death,” he said.
The crash occurred after the plane circled over Athens on autopilot for several hours until it ran out of fuel, after which the airliner crashed near the village of Grammatiko.
Source: cyprus-mail.com
