As he himself reveals, he also saved other animals that same day – including abandoned, tethered dogs. 33-year-old Albanian construction worker Olsien Muçobega became an unwitting symbol of humanity when a photo of him was captured on camera rescuing a sheep from the flames in Patras, holding it in his arms and transporting it on his motorbike.
The image went viral, touched the entire Greek public opinion and highlighted the most human side in a day of destruction.
However, this was not his only action. As Olsieni himself reveals, he also rescued other animals that day – among them chained dogs that had been abandoned.
"Do you know how many animals we saved? Even dogs, many tied dogs. I go crazy when I see what people do – they run away and leave their dogs tied. This is not negligence, it is a crime," he declared in an interview with the newspaper "Fos ton Spor" and journalist Themis Sinanoglou.
From Tepelena to Patras
Olsieni came to Greece at the age of 3, from Tepelena, Albania. His father was a construction worker and his mother a housewife, and he grew up working from a young age. Throughout his life, he worked as a painter, a delivery driver, and at a fast food restaurant that sold souvlaki.
He is married to a Greek woman, Maria-Eleni, and they have two children: Georgianna and Jasona.
Despite his roots and many years of living in Greece, he still faces bureaucratic problems:
"I have an issue with the prefecture, they are not giving me the permit I am entitled to, when in fact I should have received a Greek passport," he says bitterly.
"I'm crazy about animals"
On the day of the fire, he was at the scene with his friends from the AEK fan club in the area, to assist the firefighters. The desire to help, the love for animals, and the concern to save whatever he could were the motivations behind his action.
"I'm crazy about animals," he says, noting that all the animals that were rescued belonged to an elderly farmer who was trying to protect his property at the time.
Olsien Muçobega doesn't see himself as a hero, even though he is one to many. He sees himself as a man who did what was natural: to stand by every living being, at a time when everything was threatened by the flames.
Taken from Protothema https://www.protothema.gr/greece/article/1683095/purkagies-stin-ahaia-o-33hronos-alvanos-pou-egine-viral-me-to-provato-pano-sti-mihani/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
