December 21, 2010
On December 13, the monastery of the Holy Forerunner John the Baptist in Serres was severely damaged by a fire, with an estimated damage of 2 million euros. The fire is believed to have been caused by an electrical problem.
The main wing of the monastery caught fire around 5:00 pm. The fire began in the roof, and burned for many hours. It destroyed the kitchen, the nun's refectory, another large refectory used for guests which is over a hundred years old. All the monastery guest rooms, a bakery, a storage room, a work room, and the attached balconies were destroyed. It spread to the adjacent building and destroyed all the nun’s bookstores and incense-making supplies. The chapel located in this building, however, was not harmed, other than minor damage on the altar cloth. None of the nuns were harmed.
A PayPal account will be set up to facilitate donations from outside of Greece
A video of the fire can be viewed at: http://www.serrestv.gr/tv/musicvideo.php?vid=422c2ad36
The monastery’s website is: http://www.im-prodromou.gr/en
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