“Rhodes is on fire,” is how reporters from the Greek public broadcaster describe it Broadcasting ERT the situation on the holiday island. The fires have been raging in the south of the island for six days, eating through the mighty pine forests. On Friday it appeared as if the fire brigades had everything under control. But then the wind shifted again and the fires got out of control. No relaxation of the situation is foreseeable for Sunday, the wind should remain strong.
The fire brigades and many volunteers are currently trying to extinguish the fire on three fronts, using fire-fighting aircraft, helicopters and tractors. “The protection of human life has priority,” says a fire department spokesman. This means that the fire brigade now has to leave houses to the flames. As well as many vehicles and animals.
A total of 19,000 people from villages and hotels have now been brought to safety, the office of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced on Sunday morning. Many of those affected were brought to safe places by boats from the coasts because escape routes over land were cut off by the devastating fires.
The German travel group Tui shared on Sunday morning on Twitter with, not to bring any more tourists to the holiday island up to and including Tuesday. However, the flight connections remained in place to fly guests back to Germany. 7,800 Tui guests are said to have been affected by the fire and evacuated.
“Coal is everywhere”
The situation on the ground continues to be dramatic: houses are burning in the village of Kiotari on Rhodes, as an ERT reporter reported: “Coal is everywhere. It’s a disheartening picture.” The ten-kilometer front was moving towards the village of Asklipiio on Sunday afternoon. According to media reports, the situation was also very dangerous in the area of Apollona and Laerma, where a church also burned.
The villages of Lindos with its famous fourth-century acropolis and Kalathos, as well as the settlement of Pefka, had to be evacuated on Saturday. These villages are among the most popular tourist spots on the island.
Fishermen and private individuals brought vacationers from the fire areas with their ships. In addition, all tourist boats have been confiscated by the Coast Guard to take vacationers to a safe place. They are now to be housed in hotels in the north, which has so far been spared from the fire, and in schools and gyms.
“Most of the stranded people have already been transported. From there, the operation and unfortunately the fire continues,” said the spokesman for the coast guard.
The Greek Air Force is also deployed on Rhodes. Planes with forest firefighters and police officers have landed on the island. Officials say the officials should take part in evacuations and, if necessary, also guard properties.
Tourists on Rhodes are taken to safety on all sorts of vehicles.
(Photo: Eurokinissi /afp)
No electricity, no phone
“There have never been so many villages affected,” said a German from the German Press Agency, who has lived on the island for years. “Otherwise it burns towards the west coast. But this time the fire came over the mountain to the southeast.”
In their village of Lachania, all the residents were waiting to see if their village would also be evacuated. The power went out hours ago, and she’s sitting in the dark. “I packed the most important things in the car, water, food for my dog. But I’m waiting for the authorities’ instructions, it doesn’t help to drive somewhere headless.”
Tourists and locals have to flee.
(Photo: Lefteris Damianidis/dpa)
The official authorities also confirm that there are currently massive power cuts in the south of the island. Many networks were destroyed by the fire. In order to be able to maintain a supply, authorities have put the old power station in Soroni back into operation.
Video footage in Greek media and social networks shows people leaving their vacation spots on foot – some panicking, others calm, some carrying their suitcases, others with nothing but their clothes.
The smoke also led to health problems for the people affected. According to a government statement, eight people with respiratory problems were taken to the hospital.
20,000 German vacationers on Rhodes
According to the German Travel Association (DRV), there are currently around 20,000 German vacationers from tour operators on the island, and only a small number are affected by the evacuations.
Guests would be asked to follow the authorities’ instructions. The tour operators took care of it with their local tour guides. Travelers planning a trip to Rhodes in the next few days would be contacted by the organizers and informed whether the trip can take place.
A Tui spokesman told the SZ that the forest fires on Rhodes were a force majeure, i.e. force majeure. The tour operators are prepared for such events and can, for example, offer their customers alternative destinations in other regions not affected by forest fires.
Historic heat wave
It hasn’t rained on Rhodes for a long time, it is very dry – and there is no end in sight to the heat wave. As the meteorological office announced, values above 40 degrees Celsius are still expected in the south of the country.
Locals are trying to get the fire under control near Lindos.
(Photo: Lefteris Damianidis/Reuters)
Also in northern Greece there are currently values around 40 degrees in many places. Even most of the Aegean islands have temperatures above 38 degrees. One of the leading Greek meteorologists, Konstantinos Lagouvardos, assessed the situation on state television in such a way that this heat wave could be the longest since measurements have been taken in Greece “if things continue like this”.
The fire brigade therefore also warned of the great risk of forest fires for other areas. “We have even more difficult times ahead of us,” said a spokesman on state television. The fires in the Athens area and on the Peloponnese peninsula have been brought under control. But they flare up again and again because everything has dried up.
In the course of global warming, the risk of forest fires is increasing in many regions Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change IPCC Has been established. A warmer climate can contribute to more water falling from the sky, also more often in the form of heavy rain. However, the periods without precipitation are becoming longer in some cases. And especially in areas that are already dry, the danger of periods of drought increases. Forest fires can spread faster in extremely dry vegetation.