Firefighters backed by helicopters struggled to put out several major forest fires across southern Europe yesterday, notably in Bulgaria, Macedonia, and Greece, as well as Spain's Canary Islands.

In Bulgaria, where 23,000 hectares of woodland have been burned in the searing temperatures of the last week, fires continued to rage in the south and center.

The region around Chepelare was on high alert, and authorities said the situation around the towns of Karlovo, Kazanlak and Pazardhik was also critical. There were warnings that the 10th century monastery of Rila - which has been declared a world heritage site by UNESCO - could be in danger.

Bulgarian police said they have now arrested 20 people on suspicion of starting the forest fires.

In Greece, five fires were burning yesterday in the northwestern areas of Ioannina, Florina, Kozani, Pieria and Thesprotia, where some 300 firefighters were deployed to control them. Fires which have been burning in recent days in other parts of the country appeared to be dying down, Greek officials said. Four people have been arrested on suspicion of deliberately setting fires around Greece.

In Macedonia a new fire broke out on Saturday near the Jasen national park in the northwest. Two German helicopters from the KFOR peacekeeping force in Kosovo were sent to help put out the flames.

In the UN-run province of Serbia, three new fires were spotted northwest of Kosovo's capital Pristina.

Parts of Italy remained on high alert, but firefighters said the level of threat had gone down slightly.

Several small fires continued to burn in the Pollino national park in the south, and new outbreaks were reported near Bologna in the north, in the Abruzzo and Marche regions of the center, in Campania in the south, as well as in the Lazio region around Rome.

In the Canary Islands off the west African coast, a fire which broke out on Friday on Gran Canaria continued to burn over some 2,000 hectares, officials said.

Ten helicopters were deployed to control the blaze, and some 70 children had to be evacuated from a camp site.

A 37-year-old forest warden who first raised the alert has admitted that he started the fire. He told police he did it because he wanted his work contract to be renewed when it runs out in September. Another fire was burning on the small island of La Gomera, but it was under control. On the Spanish mainland a fire was burning on a military firing-range near Cordoba in the south.

(China Daily via AFP July 30, 2007)