Modestos Panteli
Timeline Events
He was born in the village of Liopetri1, in the province of Famagusta, on December 16, 1923.
He died2 on the night of March 31 to April 1, 1955 from an electric shock, while on EOKA ordered duty.
Modestos Panteli attended the primary school of his village until the third grade and was a farmer. He took the oath for the liberation of Cyprus and was organized into EMAK in early February 1955, together with all his brothers and sister. With the leader of the group, Grigoris Afxentiou, and other fellow villagers, they began to prepare for the start of the armed action.
In the midnight of March 31 to April 1, 1955, he undertook to help Andreas Karyos to cause a short circuit just outside Avgorou, so that Famagusta (currently Turkish-occupied) would be darkened at the time when the first EOKA bombs would be dropped.
By order of Afxentiou they tied a long chain to a thick rope, to the end of which they had tied a stone carved in the middle, where it was tied, so that it would not leave the rope, and they threw her several times over the wires, trying to pull her with fork on the other side.
For safety, they would wear rubber overshoes and rubber gloves when they would cause the short circuit. They dropped the rope several times and failed to get it over the wires. But as they dropped it and it fell down on the wet grass, the rope got wet. Finally, Andreas Karyos took Modestos Panteli on his shoulders, in an attempt to get as close as possible to the wires, in order to manage to drop the rope. He succeeded, dropped the rope, caused the short circuit, but was also electrocuted and died instantly.
Karyos suffered severe burns on his back when he came into contact with the wet rope.
