The fiercest fire in the history of Cyprus
Almost every resident of Cyprus was following the updates on the forest fire situation during the week. The situation was very difficult with a large number of ignition centres. The fire was spreading very quickly due to hot, dry and windy weather. The flames left ashes on the slopes of Troodos: pine forest and fruit gardens have been destroyed in the area of 15 sq.km. The firefighters barely managed to stop the fire before it got to the residential areas- people from few villages were evacuated. This fire was announced as the biggest fire in the entire history of the island so far. 350 firefighters and more than 1,500 volunteers were conducting ground operations, However even these numbers were not enough- specialized aviation provided by Israel, Greece, U.K., Italy and France was used to extinguish the fire. The Russian Federation also expressed its readiness to provide all the necessary help. Due to organized actions of ground and air forces, the fire was stopped. During the operation, two firemen from Nicosia have died- their car fell down the hill. They have received the hero award posthumously. The President of Cyprus has announced the 3-day national mourning, cancelled all of official events and trips in order to be present at the funeral. The families of the deceased will also receive financial compensation from the government. As far as the causes of the fire are concerned- a boy aged 12 is suspected, because supposedly he was burning the dry bushes. Quite frequently, it is the human factor which is the cause of fires in Cyprus. The authorities have requested the public not to start the campfires, not to make picnics in the forest and refrain from throwing cigarette butts in the forest- during the extraordinary hot weather, all of the above may become the reason for a devastating fire.
How to protect yourself from the heat?
Tuesday was the hottest day of the year in Cyprus so far. On the 21st of June, the temperature went over the +40°C mark. During the next few days, the temperature will decrease slightly, however the heatwave may return again soon. Due to the above, the authorities are reminding the public not to stay out in the sun for prolonged periods of time. It is very important to wear a hat, drink lots of water and decrease the amount of greasy food, alcohol and coffee intake during the day.
The Cyprus tax authorities plan to exchange the tax information with the Russian Federation.
Cyprus will provide the tax information concerning citizens of the Russian federation to the relevant authorities. The government has published a whole list of countries (incl. Russia) with which the exchange will be set up. The major type of information which will be provided are the movements on the accounts in the Cyprus banks. As early as September 2018, the first batch of information about the year 2017 is expected to be sent to Moscow. In case if the Russian tax authorities will have further questions concerning accounts with significant balances or regarding payment of taxes, they will be able to request additional information.
The Cyprus police is losing weight- the new rules to be accepted for service
The Minister of Justice, during his speech in the Parliament has stated that 70% of the Cyprus policemen have excessive body weight. He believes that the rules for accepting for service must be amended, so that the applicants comply with the new requirements in relation to height, weights, physical fitness and sport skills. Moreover, the results of the psychological tests must also be taken into account. The existing standards of one of the EU Member States or USA can be take as template, for example. According to the Minister, the Cyprus policemen must be ready to cope with any task assigned for them