Brush fires spread in southern Italy, 3 dead

PALERMO, Sicily, Aug 22 (Reuters) Three people were killed by a brush fire in Sicily today, bringing the death toll to eight in the fast-moving blazes which have plagued southern Italy during the high-summer tourist season.

The fire brigade in the Sicilian city of Messina said today three people died and one was missing at a country guest house hit by a fire in the nearby village of Patti.

Elsewhere on the Mediterranean island, dozens of houses and a holiday resort were evacuated in the area of Cefalu where emergency services have been struggling to put out a fire which broke out yesterday evening.

Mainland regions have also been burning.

''We have 11 fires in Calabria, eight in Sicily, six in Campania, four in Basilicata and three in Lazio,'' said an official with the Civil Protection authority.

Wildfires, often caused by people casually throwing burning cigarettes on the ground but also by illegal builders who want to clear the land from protected forests, are common in Italy during the summer but this year has been particularly bad.

Authorities suspect most fires have been started on purpose and Environment Minister Alfonso Pecoraro-Scanio lamented a ''criminal escalation'' in the south of the country.

Three people were found burned to death last month in the region of Puglia, where rescuers used patrol boats and helicopters to whisk 4,000 tourists and residents to safety. Fires killed another two people earlier this month in Puglia and Calabria.

REUTERS GT BD2244