Forest fires rage in Italian heatwave*

PALERMO, June 26 (AFP) Jun 26, 2007

Italian firefighters backed by water-dropping aircraft battled Tuesday
to put out over 30 forest fires after temperatures in the south topped
45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit), officials said.

Their work -- focused mainly in Sicily -- was hampered by strong
southerly winds known as the Sirocco which fanned the flames, Luca
Spoletini, a spokesman for the civil protection authorities, told AFP.

The heatwave, which is expected to end Wednesday, has been causing havoc
on the island and in the rest of southern Italy over the past few days.

At least three elderly people have died because of the heat across
Italy, according to media reports, while fires have damaged homes near
Palermo in Sicily and there have been electricity cuts across the south.

The Coldiretti farmers' union said about a thousand hectares of corn,
barley, oats and hay went up in flames in Sicily between Monday and Tuesday.

Meanwhile, two people were arrested for starting a fire in a wood near
Palermo, in what the town's prosecutor, Francesco Messineo, said could
be part of a wider mafia ploy to burn forests and then profit from the
replanting.

Power cuts have also affected the island, where about five million
people live, causing traffic lights and lifts to stop working.