Prayer Alert: Greek Wildfires Claim at Least 63 Lives
"The whole village is burning. It's been burning for three days."
(Athens, Greece)—A series of wildfires in Greece, believed to have been deliberately set, have been burning out of control since last week, and destroying everything in their path—from entire villages to people.
Firefighters managed to drive back flames from ancient Olympia and the capital, but the fires consumed areas in southern Peloponnese. One village was left with just one house standing after the inferno swept through. (AP/Photo Nikolas Giakoumidis)
"The whole village is burning. It's been burning for three days," cried a woman who had to flee to a shelter set up in a church.
Amid the blackened landscape, hundreds are believed to have been left homeless, and at least 63 people have died.
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis addressed the nation via TV on Saturday, saying, "So many fires breaking out simultaneously in so many parts of the country cannot be a coincidence. The state will do everything it can to find those responsible and punish them."
