Welcome to the latest Cretan-homes newsletter. We are working hard this month with our new Ierapetra office and things are coming together nicely. We hope to have the opening day at the beginning of the next month and will soon let all our customers know about the date and times for the Opening Party in Ierapetra! Coincidentally, it will be opening at the same time our new office in Makrigialos opened last year, so this is very cheering! Recently we have added some great new houses in our area and are working hard with our renovation projects. As the first and oldest agent in Makrigialos region, we have the widest portfolio of property, renovations and constructions in the area, so do contact us for more information and viewing appointments. We are also working in conjunction with Brits in Crete from this month, to have a newsletter link on their website, so do let us know what you think! Gerald Brown from Brits in Crete has also written an article for us this month, with tips for enjoying your stay however long in Crete. Click here to read more! So far we have had nothing but very hot weather and a strong heatwave that caused problems with the electricity power units in our area. We have been lucky and only experienced small forest fires in Crete, but every day there are reports in different parts of the country of larger and more devastating fires. The Peloponnese was the worst hit recently with fires consuming forest areas and residential areas. At the moment all emergency forces are asking people to be vigilant, especially the smokers who need to take care when stubbing out their cigarettes. The destruction caused by the fires and the terrible situation the victims are coping with daily in mainland Greece, has urged the government to set up in all banks a 'Fire Relief Fund Account'. Anyone wishing to donate can use the bank transfer information we have posted on our site, click here for more details. Finally, we have also added some new bus timetables and local phone numbers, so check out the website and our regular updates. In this month's issue:
Hottest Properties
Life in Crete
Olimpia from Crete for Life has written an article about how the children from Belarus enjoyed their stay in Crete last summer and will soon be updating her website with news about this year's trip. [Read more here] AIPP News
Our professional body the AIPP has asked for help from our member subscribers to fill out the following questionnaire. [Read more here.] Monthly Columns
Read more from our regular journalists. This month, Ann Lisney tells us about her summer visitors in her article entitled Care in the Community and Julia Jones writes her August newsletter and explains what flowers to look out for this month. Latest news in Crete
Below you can read the latest news about the happenings in Crete as always from Carol Palioudaki, at Living in Crete: Arsonists Blamed as Greece Burns
26th August 2007 BBC
The Greek prime minister has implied that many of the forest fires which have killed around 50 people across the country were started deliberately.
Costas Karamanlis said the outbreak of so many fires "can't be a coincidence".
A 65-year-old man has been charged with arson and murder relating to a fire which killed six people in Areopolis.
Blazes are still raging in many parts, with some people feared trapped as flames close in on villages in the south, on islands and near Athens
As well as the man charged over the fire in Areopolis, in the far south of Greece, two youths were detained on suspicion of arson in the northern city of Kavala.
The fire services said dozens of new fires had sprung up on Saturday .
The rapidly advancing fires caught many people unawares. Those who left the decision to flee too late were caught in their houses, cars, or as they stumbled through olive groves.
Late on Saturday church bells rang out in the village of Kolyri near Olympia, warning residents to get out as soon as possible.
At least 39 people were reported to have been killed in the worst affected region, around the town of Zaharo in the western Peloponnese, by a fire that broke out on Friday and quickly spread. Another four bodies were discovered in the central Peloponnese region of Arcadia
The rapidly advancing fires caught many people unawares. Those who left the decision to flee too late were caught in their houses, cars, or as they stumbled through olive groves.
Late on Saturday church bells rang out in the village of Kolyri near Olympia, warning residents to get out as soon as possible.
Among many tragic stories to emerge, one that shocked many Greeks was that of a mother who burned to death with her four children. They died clutching each other.
The heatwave that has left much of Greece's countryside so vulnerable to fire was set to continue on Sunday. Winds were expected to be lower than in previous days, but still sufficient to fan the flames.
Hundreds of firefighters are attempting to dampen the flames, with assistance from hundreds of soldiers. France, Spain and Italy sent firefighting aircraft and other EU countires sent helicopters and fire engines.
Early Election called for September 16th
August 19, 2007 IHT, Reuters
Ending months of speculation, Prime Minister Costas Caramanlis set the nation on a political footing Friday, telling voters to prepare for an early election on Sept. 16 intended to secure a fresh mandate for overhauling the economic and social systems.
Greek opposition parties and newspapers on Saturday criticised Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis for calling early elections, saying the decision was designed to limit political damage from a bond scandal.
Karamanlis, whose conservative government has a slight lead in opinion polls, on Friday called elections for September 16, six months ahead of schedule. He said he wanted a fresh mandate to push on with economic and social reforms.
"The (ruling) New Democracy (party) is afraid of the bond scandal," said George Karatzaferis, leader of the nationalist LAOS party which is expected to enter the new parliament.
His views were echoed by several Athens liberal newspapers which noted that a parliamentary briefing by the head of the money laundering commission, investigator George Zorbas, on the findings of a bond scandal probe would not take place as planned on Tuesday after parliament was dissolved.
More than 60 people face criminal charges for their role in the sale of government bonds to pension funds at inflated prices. Those facing charges are yet to be named and analysts say the government may suffer if members are seen to be caught up in the scandal.
The scandal has already pushed the government's approval ratings to their lowest level since they swept to power in 2004. The prime minister's party now leads the main opposition Socialists by only one or two percentage points in polls.
Athens suburb fire destroys homes
17th August 2007 BBC
Four simultaneous forest fires broke out on Penteli mountain on Thursday and swept down into affluent suburbs some 20km (12 miles) from the city centre.
Dozens of homes were destroyed and at least 10 people were taken to hospital with breathing problems.
Officials say they suspect the fires were the work of arsonists.
"The fire is now away from the suburbs, confined to a forest area and that is where all our efforts are focused," a fire brigade official told Reuters.
Although the fire has been extinguished on all major fronts, officials say emergency crews remain on high alert in case high winds in the area cause a fresh outbreak.
Residents of the Melisia, Vrilisia and Penteli suburbs watched on Thursday as 30m (100ft) high flames engulfed their homes. Hundreds of people had to be evacuated, including 130 patients in a clinic in Melisia.
A state of emergency has been declared in the three affected districts.
"This is a huge catastrophe," the Melisia mayor, Manolis Grafakos, said.
"There are no words to describe it. A large chunk of the forest is gone, houses have been burned and I do not think we are fully aware of the extent of the damage."
More than 60 fire engines, 19 planes and helicopters as well as hundreds of firefighters and volunteers were involved in tackling the blaze.
However, there has been criticism that the response to the crisis was too slow, with water-dropping planes not reaching the scene for almost two hours.
In a news conference the authorities said the planes had been hampered by smoke and winds of more than 80 km/h (50 mph), which fanned the flames.
The BBC's Malcolm Brabant in Athens says this is the worst fire season in Greece in living memory.
Rhodes conservationists ask island visitors to take care in the sea
10th Aug 2007 ekathimerini
Conservationists on Rhodes have asked visitors to the Dodecanese island to take care not to harm sea turtles after 16 of the animals were found dead in the island’s waters this year. The Rhodes Hydrobiological Station said that six of the dead sea turtles were found in July, the highest figure recorded for a single month on the island. This has prompted fears they were killed after being struck by speedboats or jet skis .
Strong winds fan flames on Corfu; village evacuated as precaution
6th August 2007 ekathimerini
A fire on the western island of Corfu prompted authorities yesterday to evacuate the village of Santa for precautionary reasons. Five water-dropping planes along with two helicopters were taking part in the fight against the blaze that was being fanned by strong winds. Earlier, firefighters contained fires in Florina and Kastoria, Western Macedonia, without any reports of injuries or homes being damaged.
Northern Greece – From Heatwave to Floods
7th August 2007 Reuters
Summer storms flooded farms and village homes in northern Greece on Monday, destroying crops and forcing the evacuation of a camp site, authorities said.
Heavy rains hit northern Greece overnight, in the middle of an unusually hot summer, causing floods and power cuts in the city of Thessaloniki and other towns in the region.
"We have intense storms in the north ... and they are likely to continue for several hours," Greek weather service director Dimitris Ziakopoulos told state TV.
He said the storms could spread to the rest of the country and hit the Aegean islands in the middle of the tourist season.
About 50 houses and shops in the northeastern town of Komotini have been destroyed by the floods. The fire brigade received nearly 200 emergency calls from Komotini and Thessaloniki residents to pump water out of buildings.
TV showed cars trapped in muddy streets and trees uprooted by strong winds. Hundreds of hectares of cotton and tobacco crops have been destroyed.
Greece has experienced two heat waves this summer that have killed more than 10 people and sent dozens to hospital as temperatures soared to 46 Celsius (115 Fahrenheit). The country has also been ravaged by thousands of forest fires.
British Tourist rescued near Tripiti Gorge
4th August Haniotika Nea
A British tourist suffering from heat stroke was rescued from near Tripiti gorge by helicopter on Thursday, just a few days after two Polish tourists were found dead in the same gorge. The Briton and his partner had set off from the Xyloskala at Omalos and walked towards Tripiti. Shortly afterwards the man started suffering heat stroke symptoms and dizziness. The couple notified authorities who sent a Super Puma helicopter to pick them up and take the man to hospital. He was treated and released from hospital the next day.
Alert after passenger boards wrong flight
4th August 2007 ekathimerini
An investigation has been launched into how a young Bulgarian man boarded the wrong flight at Athens International Airport and was eventually discovered by passengers rather than security or airline staff.
It was revealed yesterday that the unnamed man boarded a flight for Copenhagen although he had a ticket for a different destination. Officials want to find out how he passed through two security checks without staff noticing that he was headed for the wrong flight.
It only emerged that the Bulgarian was on the wrong airplane when passengers noticed that he changed seats several times after boarding the aircraft. They notified the cabin crew and airport security staff boarded the airplane and removed the passenger.
Sources said the young man was given an eight-month suspended sentence for breaching air travel safety laws.
Fires abate as weather cools
3rd August ekathimerini
Firefighters fought several blazes in different parts of the country yesterday but the number of forest fires dropped considerably as temperatures cooled.
The worst of yesterday’s fires was at the foot of Mount Olympus. Local authorities believe that the blaze, caused by three smaller fires which started simultaneously on Wednesday evening, was the work of arsonists. Mayor Nikolaos Valsamopoulos described the damage wreaked on forestland as “the worst since the German bombing of 1943.”
Smaller fires were reported in Messinia, Iraklion on Crete, Serres, Florina, Kastoria and Kilkis. The fire in Messinia was close to residential areas but there were no reports of any damage.
Most of the fires had been extinguished by nightfall but firefighters remained on standby.
Meanwhile European Union figures showed that last month was the worst July on record for forest fires on the continent.
Photovoltaic power at Athens Airport
3rd Aug 2007 ekathimerini
An 8-megawatt photovoltaic system will be built to help power Athens airport. The 43-million-euro project is expected to be completed next summer and will supply the AIA with 30 percent of its energy needs. The photovoltaic cells will cover an area of up to 60,000 square meters and will not affect any operations.
That's it for another newsletter! As usual, we are adding more properties daily so keep watching the site and asking for any information. As always, any information or comments are very much appreciated. Thanks for choosing Cretan-homes, and feel free to contact us with any questions or queries. Have a great month. Kind regards, 
Abbe Waddington-Karavitis
Cretan-Homes.com, Makriyialos, Crete 72055. Company registration no: 110376155/206
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Cretan-homes, Crete property estate agents
Cretan Homes Newsletter - July/August 2007
