PRAGUE, Aug 27, 2007 (AFP) - The Czech Republic said Monday that it has offered Greece a helicopter that can carry up to 900 litres (220 gallons) of water to fight forest fires raging in the south of the country.

A five-man crew will accompany the police helicopter if the offer is accepted by Athens, the foreign ministry in Prague said in a statement.

Greece appealed for help from other European countries after fires surged through its parched southern countryside on Friday. So far more than 60 people have been killed in the infernos and a national emergency declared.