 As the battle had reached a critical phase, the local EAM leadership called on the retired army officer, and member of the right-wing Panhellenic Liberation Organization, Major Ioannis Kontonasios, to take over the general command of the partisan forces.Kontonasios, with Captain Athanasios Dafnis as his staff officer, established his headquarters in the monastery of the village of Mikrokastro, and ordered the complete encirclement of the Italian column.Throughout the night, local people and fighters continued to flock to the battlefield; by the dawn of 6 March, the Greek forces surrounding the Italians numbered over 2,000 men.