Forest fire on the Greek island of Rhodes
It is out of control and caused mass evacuations of tourists
More than 2,500 people have been transferred by boats to safe places. Due to the fire, four towns in the center of the island had to be evacuated, while the flames have caused damage to at least three hotels and have already reached the town of Laerma, in the center of the island, where they have burned houses, local media report.
Thousands of tourists have been evacuated this Saturday on the Greek island of Rhodes due to a large forest fire, which is out of control, and have been transferred by boats to other safe places on the island.
So far, more than 2,500 people have been evacuated by boat from Kiotari beach, on the island's west coast, Coast Guard spokesman Nikos Alexíu told private SKAI television.
Due to the fire, four towns in the center of the island had to be evacuated, while the flames threatened several hotels in the area this afternoon, causing serious damage to at least three of them.
In images released by the Greek media, you can see how tourists are transferred in vehicles to the evacuation points on the beach. As reported by the municipal authorities of Rhodes, there are currently some 8,000 tourists in the affected area, who will be transferred either to the airport, if they wish to leave the island, or to other safe places on the island.
The Rhodes Port Authority decided to requisition all tourist boats in the area to help in the evacuation operation.
Eight people with mild respiratory problems had to be taken to ambulances for medical attention. According to Civil Protection, tourists are being evacuated complying with the necessary security measures and so far no injuries have been reported.
The fire has burned thousands of hectares of virgin forest and this Saturday it spread to the south, fueled by strong winds. Greece is experiencing a wave of extreme heat, with temperatures that exceeded 44 degrees today in the central area of the country, while tomorrow, Sunday, thermometers are expected to reach 45 degrees.
For this reason, the Greek authorities already had to decree last week the closure of the Acropolis of Athens during the hottest hours of the day. Two years ago, fires ripped through record-breaking areas in Greece.
In total, at least 30,000 people have had to be displaced and, when the evacuation order was given this afternoon, some 8,000 tourists were in the area.
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