Athens News Agency: News in English, 07-08-16

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Latest major wildfire in greater Athens area reported

[02] New power plant on Rhodes OK'd

[01] Latest major wildfire in greater Athens area reported

According to television reports throughout the afternoon, the blaze raged across a three-kilometre front on the Penteli mountain range (due north of the Greek capital) reaching and torching several residences high on the southern slopes of the mountain side - long defaced over past decades by quarries and construction.

High winds initially fanned the flames as scores of firefighters, fire engines and fire-fighting aircraft battled the blaze early on. The wildfire on Penteli was the second major fire to hit the mountains surrounding Athens this summer, with the devastating fire on Mt. Parnitha -- northwest of the city -- breaking out in late June. A less destructive blaze also erupted on the slopes of Mt. Hymmetus, east of Athens, days later in what was the beginning of a string of wildfires to plague much of Greece throughout July.

Towards the early afternoon, flames were coming close to some of Athensā most affluent neighbourhoods, including Kefalari and Politia. Additionally, hospitals and residences were evacuated in the wider region, while power outages were reported in the Vrillisia and Penteli townships due to downed power lines and burned poles.

A heavy reddish cloud, meanwhile, hung over Athens at around noontime, testament of the fire's extent.

Political reaction

In the wake of the latest wildfire, opposition party representatives commented on the incident, with a top PASOK deputy, Thanasis Tsouras, charging that various same-day government meetings were convened instead of action to deal with the issue of the day, namely, the wildfire.

On her part, Communist Party (KKE) leader Aleka Papariga toured parts of the burned area on Thursday afternoon, where she again referred to an ?organised plan? to burn forestland around Greece in order to benefit land developers, land grabbers, squatters and political interests in the country.

Finally, Coalition of the Left (Synaspismos) leader Alekos Alavanos announced that he was cutting short his ongoing tour of Crete to return to Athens and visit the fire-ravaged areas, while Synaspismos cadres also referred to a lack of prevention by state services.

Caption: A fire engine was among the casualties on Thursday, Aug. 16, 2007, in the Nea Penteli district just north of Athens, as a wildfire ravaged the area. ANA-MPA / ORESTIS PANAGIOTOU.

[02] New power plant on Rhodes OK'd

Following a positive recommendation by the independent Energy Regulatory Authority, the new plant -- located in Piso Kampos region in the holiday island's south -- will initially burn low-sulphur fuel oil before transferring to natural gas at a later date.

The new unit, expected to be completed by June 1, 2011, is expected to fully cover the island's energy needs, particularly during peak summer power consumption. The electricity peak on Rhodes this past summer reached 193.5M.

"The licence for the 120 MW unit ... ensures the long-term energy planning for the island's electricity needs up until 2020," Development Minister Dimitris Sioufas announced on Thursday, while he noted that following Crete and Rhodes, the government was advancing planning for the long-term energy needs of other large islands, "which comprise the tourism pylons of the country".

Along these lines, he noted that a second Igoumenitsa-Corfu 150KV (northwest Greece) connection line has already been completed, while a similar plan for the eastern Aegean islands of Lesvos and Samos was in the final stages.

At the same time, bourse-listed and state-run PPC was advancing a tender for underwater connections for all of the Cyclades Islands with the Lavrio plant in southeast Attica (the greater Athens area), which was expected to provide a more-or-less permanent solution for the energy needs of the popular Cyclades islands.

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