MAKISTOS (Greece), Aug 28: Greece’s conservative government faced mounting accusations of incompetence on Tuesday over forest fires that have killed at least 63 people.

Neighbouring countries sent firefighters to help tackle the blazes that have raged for five days and are still encircling villagers who fear for their lives.

“In the name of God and Mary, do something! We’ve been asking for help since Friday,” said one distraught caller to a Greek TV channel from the village of Matesi on the southern Peloponnese peninsula, the area worst hit by the fires.

“We can’t see anything, the smoke is so thick. We can’t escape any more, there is no way out. We are 40 people and we will burn,” said the unidentified man.

The government, which faces a parliamentary election in three weeks, has vowed to hunt down the arsonists it blames for Greece’s worst fires on record.

The Socialist opposition says this is just rhetoric aimed at diverting attention from the government’s weak response to the crisis.

“The government has proven tragically incapable of dealing with fires,” said George Papandreou, leader of the main opposition party, PASOK.

“It could not save people’s lives, property and homes ...it’s time for Greek people to choose a strong government that can guarantee security, confidence and hope.”

Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis still intends to hold a Sept 16. election, six months ahead of schedule. The latest opinion poll showed his lead had slipped to below 1 percentage point, due in part to the wildfire emergency.

“There are wounds that cannot be healed, but it is our duty to do whatever possible to alleviate these people’s pain ... to help them get back on their feet,” said Karamanlis, calling for national unity.

The government has offered rewards of up to $1.4 million for help in finding arsonists and asked a public prosecutor to see if they could be prosecuted as terrorists.—Reuters