Kentro, Elis

Kentro, Kendro or Kedro (Greek, Modern: Κέντρο, Ancient/Katharevousa: -on, meaning centre (center), older forms Kentron, Kendron, Kedron, mainly named for the central part of the Pineios River is a village located in the municipality of Amaliada in the northern part of the prefecture of Ilia in the western part of the Peloponnese. It used to be passed by a road connecting Gastouni and the Thermal Springs of Kyllini and Simopoulo until a dam was being opened. It is located 16 km E of Gastouni, about 6 km S of Borsi, 2 km N of Agias Ilias, about 15 km (old: 10 km) W of Simopoulo, 16 km NE of Amaliada, about 25 km N of ENE of Pyrgos and 15 km E of GR-9/E55 from the southbound lanes and about 20 km NE from the northbound lanes. The Pineios River used to flow south of the town centre but today, it flows in the southern part with a suspension bridge in the west making it the only suspension bridge in the Peloponnese and Western Greece until the opening of the Rio-Antirio bridge.

Nearest places

*Agios Dimitrios, W
*Borsi, N
*Aigi, SE
*Agios Ilias, S

Geography

*Location:
**Longitude: 21.445 (21°26'41') E
**Latitude: 37.8955 (37°53'38') N
*Postal code: 270 69
*Elevation:
**lowest: Peneus River
**centre: 90 m
**highest: about 150 to 200 mm
*Dialing code: +11+30-26220 (030-26220)

Historical population

Kentro has a small school a church and a square ("plateia"). Residential areas are around the centre and surrounding with a canal and the area with a few forests.

The area sits on a mountain slope which is mainly covered with grasslands while further south, hills cover the south with forests in the valley areas and grasslands to the higher parts and the southwest and further north making it the Peneus valley. The farmlands are mainly made up of a few groves, pastures and fruits and vegetables.

In the central part, north of Kentro and in the Pineios Valley, today, west of Kentro are covered with farmlands. Farmlands used to dominate the northeast until the construction of the Dam.

In the 1960s, The government began building an earth-shaped damnamed the Peneus Dam (Φράγμα Πηνειού "Fragma Pineiou") to supply water for Northern and much of Elia. This has flooded a couple of roads including from Gastouni to Simopoulo, and from Borsi to Simopoulo which is now accessible over the earth dam. The direction is almost directly form north to south. The water is not safe for drinking, because it contain some contaminants. It dams up the Pineios River. Its dam is made out of earth and it is considered the highest dam in Elia, but not the Peloponnese. The dam is located to the east. The floodway has cut off two roads relocated. The floodway length is nearly 1 km. Roads were remapped and bypasses Kentro. It contains the Prefecture's (then the Peloponnese's) longest suspended bridge. It is suspended with concrete and is not lighted, and Hills surround this earth-built dam. The length of the road over the dam is nearly 2 km with a water control tower in the middle. The area is about 10 km².

ee also

*Communities of Ilia