.bmp)
.bmp)
Greek firemen Tuesday scrambled to snuff out a fire in the southern Peloponnese peninsula that has been raging for 12 days to contain damage caused by nationwide blazes which killed at least 65 people."There has been a resurgence of fire on Mount Parnon and we have sent two fire-fighting planes and a helicopter to the area," a fire brigade press officer told AFP."Inhabited areas are not under threat," he added.Mount Parnon, near the ancient city of Sparta,is home to several bird and animal species.The Mount Parnon front is part of a broader inferno in the Peloponnese peninsula south of Athens which killed dozens and destroyed swathes of forest and farmland, along with houses, farms and storehouses before being largely extinguished on Monday.At least 65 people have been killed by fires around the country since August 24, and 200,000 hectares (500,000 acres) of forest and other land destroyed. The body of a man was found Tuesday in the Peloponnese.Greece's fire brigade was hoping to tackle other possible flare-ups Tuesday as strong winds were expected later in the day, the fire brigade official said."We are expecting winds of up to 30 kilometres (25 miles) an hour," he said.A large force of nearly 700 firefighters and more than 100 fire engines remained in the Peloponnese as a precautionary measure on Tuesday.Another outbreak near the western town of Preveza was under control, the fire services said.Nearly 100 fires erupted every day on an average last week, amid widespread anger that the government had not intervened rapidly and at the scale required.The opposition Socialists (PASOK) have roundly attacked the government's handling of the fires with elections set for September 16. Before the tragedy, Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis had appeared set for an easy electoral win. Karamanlis has blamed arson for at least some of the fires, saying action would be taken against those responsible.The Greek economy ministry estimates the fires caused damage of around 1.6 billion euros (2.2 billion dollars).The European Commission has said the EU could pay up to 600 million euros in aid this year to help Greece recover.Additional funds could be mobilised beyond the EU solidarity fund, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said on Saturday after flying over the affected areas.http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=070904173314.qlsth4lv&show_article=1&catnum=0
As in the days of Noah...
