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Ein Hod, Israel (AFP) Dec 2, 2010 Nightfall in northern Israel and flames leap 30 or 40 metres (100 to 130 feet) into the sky along a horizon of fire in the worst forest blaze the country has seen since records began. A steady stream of cars, police vehicles, fire trucks and ambulances crowds the road leading out of the artists' village of Ein Hod amid a cacophony of wailing sirens. "Get out of here -- quickly! The flames are coming!" a policeman bellows into a megaphone. "I put what I could in a small case and left," says Galina Romanio, waiting for help several hundred metres (yards) outside Ein Hod as the huge forest fire threatens to engulf the village. A huge cloud of smoke billows overhead, tinged flame red. The inferno killed at least 40 people on Thursday when it ripped through a forest covering the Carmel hill ridge, one of Israel's most popular beauty spots near the northern port city of Haifa. In the village of Ein Hod itself, firemen hose down homes with flame retardants. For Tal Gutman, a 58-year-old artist who has lived in the village for three decades, this is not the first time fire has forced her out of her home. "Ten years ago, half the village burned. I hope this time our houses will be spared," she tells AFP from behind the wheel of her car. She has managed to grab jewellery, some important paperwork, a few books and a change of clothing. And, of course, her little dog. Meiri Yunes, mayor of the neighbouring Arab-Israeli village of Fureidis, is also on hand, saying he has come to help if he can. "We live side by side with our Jewish neighbours in both good times and bad," he says. Suitcase in hand, Romanio waits at a bus stop hoping someone will offer her a lift to safety, far from from the flames. "I don't know where to go," says the recently arrived immigrant from Russia in halting Hebrew. "I'm scared." The stench of burning fills the air. The flames come closer, then veer off before getting closer again as they are fanned by the wind. Several kilometres (miles) away, on the heights overlooking Haifa, residents watch from their apartments as the fire ravages the Carmel nature reserve. One Arab resident takes photographs of the conflagration. "We're afraid the flames will reach our homes," he says. At this stage, it is still unclear what started the fire, which erupted at around 11:30 am (0930 GMT) on Thursday. According to the firemen, it has already devastated nearly a thousand hectares (2,470 acres). It will take several days before the amount of damage caused by the worst blaze in 62 years of the Jewish state is known.
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Forest fire inferno kills 40 in northern IsraelHaifa, Israel (AFP) Dec 2, 2010 At least 40 people were killed on Thursday when a devastating fire tore through a forest near the northern city of Haifa, prompting Israel to call for international help to put out the blaze. Police sources said at least 40 people had died in the blaze which officials said was the worst in Israel's history. Israel's ambulance service Magen David Adom initially said around 40 people had b ... read more |
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