PARIS, Dec 19, 2007 (AFP) - Some of the biggest disasters of 2007:

- In November, a cyclone kills around 3,300 people and leaves hundreds of thousands homeless and in desperate need of supplies in Bangladesh. A military-led relief effort, aided by a fleet of US helicopters, is hampered by huge logistical hurdles after many roads are washed away by a tidal wave or blocked by fallen trees.

- More than 3,200 people are killed and 25 million of others marooned and displaced in the worst floods in decades across South Asia between June and September. Heavy monsoon rains and snow

NICOSIA, Oct 25, 2007 (Xinhua via COMTEX) -- Cyprus will allocate some 14.5 million euro (about 20 million U.S. dollars) for the reconstruction of a Greek village which was destroyed by the disastrous forest fires this summer, Interior Minister Christos Patsalides said on Thursday.

The government will assign the project through public bidding in the next two months. A five-member ministerial committee has been set up to supervise the reconstruction of Artemida, a village in Peloponnesus where some 30 houses and a local cultural center were reportedly destroyed by fires.

U.S. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
BUREAU FOR DEMOCRACY, CONFLICT, AND HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE (DCHA)
OFFICE OF U.S. FOREIGN DISASTER ASSISTANCE (OFDA)

BACKGROUND AND KEY DEVELOPMENTS

- Extremely hot temperatures and below normal rainfall across southeast Europe from June to August 2007 led to numerous wildfires in nearly every country in the region. Although wildfires are annual occurrences, and the local ecosystems are fire-adapted, the 2007 season was among the worst on record, according to national firefighting authorities and government officials.

(Ileia Province, Greece) On his back and through the flames that burned everything except his house, Father Ioanni carried to safety his 22 year-old son who had passed out from smoke inhalation. The wildfires that devastated Greece's western province of Ileia spared Father Ioanni's home but completely destroyed his father's 600 year-old home along with its original furnishings and olive and fruit trees. In the midst of the devastation Father Ioanni has been assisting International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC) in its work to distribute emergency relief to the farmers of this region.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 7, 2007
Press Office: 202-712-4320
Public Information: 202-712-4810
www.usaid.gov

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The United States Government, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), today announced the delivery of much needed commodities to the Hellenic Red Cross in response to the wildfires in Greece. The commodities include 1,056 family hygiene kits, 10,000 blankets, 300 family tents, 3,000 sleeping bags, 2,000 mattress pads and 1,000 kitchen sets. The total value

The Washington Foreign Press Center
Washington, DC
September 6, 2007

MODERATOR: (In progress.) And he's here for - to talk about USAID's effort in Greece in the wake of the terrible fires that you've had there. We are on a bit of a tight schedule this morning. He'll have some remarks and then he'll take your questions and we also have New York participating. There are a couple journalists there and we'll give them a chance to ask questions as well.

MR. LUU: Well, thank you. I thought what I'd do before I actually discuss the details of our response today

IOCC Plans for Distribution of Livestock Feed and Long Term Relief

(Parnonas, Greece) - Members of IOCC's Emergency Response Network in Greece to help with trauma counseling were called upon to assist Greek, French and Russian firefighters to protect the Monastery of Saint Anagyri from a fire on Parnonas Mountain in the Peloponnese. "The fires were advancing on the monastery from three directions," said Father Angelo Pappas of Portsmouth, New Hampshire who reported seeing flames reaching 30-40 feet. "We boarded up windows while a Russian jet

(Extract)

Hurricane Felix

Hurricane Felix came ashore on Tuesday morning in northeast Nicaragua, near Punta Gorda, as a category five storm. Hurricane warnings have also been issued for eastern Honduras. Church World Service is maintaining contact with partners the Council of Evangelical Churches for a Denominational Alliance (CEPAD), in Nicaragua, and the Christian Commission for Development (CCD), in Honduras, to assess needs in the wake of the storm.

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita

Over the past two years, Church World

L'Armée suisse achèvera demain mardi l'engagement de trois hélicoptères de type Super Puma pour la lutte contre les feux de forêt dans la péninsule grecque du Péloponnèse. Les hélicoptères reviennent en Suisse mercredi.

Les autorités grecques admettent avoir la situation en grande partie sous contrôle dans les régions incendiées. En accord avec la Direction du développement et de la coopération (DDC), l'Armée suisse mettra un terme ce mardi à l'engagement de trois de ses Super Puma dans la lutte contre les feux de forêt. La Task Force « PELO