ATHENS, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- The official death toll
has risen to 52 in the unprecedented forest fires that have swept through the
southern Peloponnese peninsula since Thursday.
Four separate wildfire fronts continued to rage in
southern Greece Sunday morning, fanned by gale-force winds and heat, and amid
widespread speculation of arson.
Burnt houses stud the village of
Makinos, in the Zacharo area of Peloponnese. (Xinhua/AFP
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The most threatening blazes were centered in the
southwest Peloponnese, the worse-hit area so far.
Dozens of people, mostly in the southern Peloponnese,
were hospitalized, the authorities said, adding that an undetermined number of
people remain unaccounted for, and that they feared an even higher death toll.
Thousands of hectares of crops, pasture land and
forests were scorched.
Fire-fighters looked to weaker winds and assistance
from a half dozen neighboring and west European countries -- in the form of
fire-fighting aircraft -- as allies Sunday in the battle to contain the flames.
In the wake of the unprecedented natural catastrophe,
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis Saturday evening declared a nationwide state of
emergency and promised hefty financial assistance for fire-ravaged victims and
regions.
In expressing his personal "grief and rage" over the
wildfires, Karamanlis said, "I am angered, as are all Greeks, by the fact that
so many wildfires occurred in so many different parts. This is not a
coincidence."
ATHENS, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Greek government on
Sunday announced a series of urgent measures for fire-ravaged areas of the
country as well as individuals affected by the wildfires, including deferments
on payments to social security funds, extra pension and unemployment bonus.
Pensions to eligible members of families of victims
were announced during an urgent press conference by some ministers.Full story
