Villages threatened by forest fire

A FIRE raging out of control in a rural area north of Paphos late yesterday destroyed vast areas of forest and was threatening several villages.

Paphos police said the 200 or so residents of Philousa village had been advised to evacuate their homes, while nearby Mesana and Arminou were also in the path of the blaze.

The fire broke out around midday and was still out of control late in the evening despite the efforts of the fire brigade, police, national guardsmen and volunteers.

The British Bases sent in two fire-fighting Wessex helicopters to help. “This is a very major fire and we were asked to provide aircraft from Akrotiri,” bases spokesman Rob Need said. “Some villages have been threatened and a lot of resources have been put into fighting the blaze.”

 

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