Abi Rose, a tourist, was on her way to Rhodes on Tuesday with her husband Chris and son Jasper (second from left) when the fire started. within a few days, but it wasn't until Greek soldiers showed up that someone bothered to order her to evacuate.
“Nobody told us anything,” a North Lincolnshire holidaymaker told the Telegraph, sitting cross-legged on the floor of the island's sweltering airport on Saturday night.
“At noon, people were still swimming in the pool, and right behind them were huge balls of smoke and flames. But the hotel kept telling us everything was fine and we didn't hear anything from Jet2 even when the army evacuated us.”
Ms Prendergast, who is five months pregnant, feared for her baby when she and Jordan, her husband, were forced to flee Princess Andriana's resort near Kiotari on Saturday afternoon.
They were among hundreds of British holidaymakers who said they were abandoned by travel companies as they fled one of the worst bushfires to hit the island.
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Fires raged in the interior of Rhodes for nearly a week when high winds and temperatures fanned the blaze to apocalyptic proportions on Friday and Saturday.
The flames quickly engulfed firefighters. effort and moved south to the resorts of Kiotari and Gennadi on the rugged south coast of the island.
By Saturday afternoon, huge clouds of smoke obscured the sun, and the flames were spreading faster than many people could run.
Witnesses describe fleeing on foot in 40-degree heat, sometimes dragging small children with them. Some said they felt the heat of the approaching flames and were afraid.
“We saw lines of people just walking through the heat. We were all just kicked out of our hotel and had nowhere to go – even people with small children,” Ms Prendergast said.
As the flames descended from the hill, thousands of people trudged towards the coast and the relative safety of the sea.
Greek broadcaster ERT showed a lonely woman carrying her luggage through the smoke, looking disoriented.
She could hear the firefighters shouting to her: “Madame, your life! Come here! Leave it all behind!”
Tourists in the Lindos resort were evacuated by boat. Photo: Reuters/Lefteris Diamandis
On the beaches, witnesses described scenes of chaos.
“It was crazy – it was like Dunkirk,” said John H., a British traveler who asked The Telegraph not to give his last name because Jet2 “might not honor my insurance policy.”
“Water was the only safe place,” said Amy Leiden, who made it to the beach early in the morning after escaping from her hotel as flames raced down the hillside.
“The army was waiting, but everyone was fighting to get in.” into boats. Children fell into the water. It was just awful
“It was just a massacre. Everyone ran with squealing children, parents fainted.
Dan Jones, sports director of the Torquay Academy, vacationing with his family, said it was “the scariest moment of my life.”
He tweeted, posting a photo of his sons in the boat that saved them:
We are safe for now. The scariest moment in my entire life. Having entered the sea and climbed onto the fishing trawler, we are far from danger. I don't know how they'll handle it when the dust settles, but what brave boys. 😢 💙 Family is everything #rhodes #wildfire pic.twitter.com/YGkcMaHMpg
— Dan Jones (@DanJonesPE) July 22, 2023
He later added, “The only heroes are the locals who have worked tirelessly to protect their residents, as well as us tourists. We will be forever grateful.”
By Sunday afternoon, police said about 16,000 people had been evacuated by land and 3,000 by sea. Thousands of others were believed to have fled along the road or in their own vehicles after being ordered to leave.
Greek police spokeswoman Constantina Dimoglidou called it “the largest fire evacuation in the history of Greece”, adding: “We had to evacuate 30,000 people.”
The evacuees were housed in schools, gyms and any other buildings that could be made available. Often they camped on the bare floor, rejoicing in the simple escape of the fire and having a roof over their heads.
In Archangelos, a village in the east of the island that was the first destination for many, several locals offered to take in the displaced islanders and tourists.
Zoi Ikuta, a local resident who asked neighbors on social media for housing, said: “There was no plan when people started arriving, so I sent this call.
“Fortunately, the schools in the village are open, but we are ready to receive people in our homes if necessary.”
The departure lounge at Rhodes International Airport was packed with passengers desperate to get back home. Photo: Will Vasilopoulos/AFP via Getty Images
On Sunday morning, the fire moved closer to Archangelos itself, and villagers considered possible evacuations. Locals say they were largely on their own.
“For a long time, power was nowhere to be seen,” said Angelos Kolios, owner of a local restaurant. “Air support is late. The firemen are doing everything they can, but there are very few of them.”
Authorities believe the fire will not be easy to contain, especially with windy forecasts in the coming days.
Yanis Artopio, spokesman for the Greek fire brigade, told The Telegraph: “We are doing everything in our power to restore peace to the island, but our biggest enemy is the weather.”
“Jet2, where are you? No help, contact or direction,” John Hughes from County Durham tweeted. “I had to walk 4 miles in the heat on dirt roads in smoke and ashes with a 5-year-old child. Nothing.”
Simon Warne, a Sheffield graduate who arrived Thursday for a wedding, said he spent the night at a school turned crisis center but said he had “radio silence” from tour operators.
“Special mention to the locals who brought us food, drinks, towels at 4am,” he tweeted.
“My buddy was in the water helping women and children into boats so they could be evacuated (his hotel was much closer to the fire) which ended up breaking up with his fiancée. Didn't get a message or email from Tui to let them know what's going on.”
Wildfires in Kiotari leave devastation in their wake Photo: Damianidis Eleftherios/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
How and Ms. Prendergast, Ms. Leiden said she had repeatedly asked in previous days if she should evacuate, but was repeatedly told by hotel and Jet2 staff to stay put.
“And then all of a sudden there was this thick smoke, ash was falling from the sky, and the Jet2 rep and staff just ran out of the hotel and let us in,” she told Sky News.
“And then the police ran into the hotel and told us, ‘You have to go now, you won’t make it.’”
“It was just awful. Our 11-year-old girl is with us, and we are walking along the road at two in the morning. The fire was catching up with us.
“I thought, 'I don't know how to do this,' because I didn't think we could do it.”
The fire caught up with a small family, and it became difficult for them to breathe when a local resident pulled them into his truck and drove them to the beach.
They eventually made it to the boat and were taken to the north of the island, where they, along with other evacuees, were sent to take refuge in the basement of the school.
Like hundreds of others, they have only clothes to stand in and a handful of things that they can carry with them. In their opinion, their hotel burned down, and with it, most of their luggage.
Tui organized buses for her clients to escape the fire. know how to get home.
On Saturday, at 19:00, Rhodes airport looked like the site of a major siege.
Evacuee firefighters yelled at holiday officials, cafes were packed with tourists who hadn't eaten anything since leaving their hotels earlier in the day, and parents on the verge of sunstroke towed small children who were forced to walk for hours in 40-degree heat.
Jet2 representatives in red uniforms scurried around trying to deal with more evacuees.
Some irate evacuees spoke of frightening dark corridors of the hotel and stuffy rooms filled with smoke due to a power outage.
Others spoke about how difficult it is to calm friends and family at home, because most of the phone lines and Wi-Fi masts burned down in a fire.
Others, like the Prendergasts, criticized hotels that didn't evacuate fast enough, didn't organize enough transportation, and – in many cases – only offered guests the choice of hiding from the heat in a basement or fleeing to an equally scorching beach.
“We thought we'd be trampled to death”
Marie Decroyer, a hot and flustered Belgian mother with three young children and a weary husband in tow, told The Telegraph Tui showed resentment. total lack of care.
“There were almost no buses, and we thought we would be trampled to death when we tried to get on one!” she said angrily.
Ms. Decroyer said that Jet2 had buses that were “only half full” but refused to take her family because “we weren't traveling with their airline.”
“In the end, we had to walk through the heat for several miles before a kind local man took us to the airport,” she said.
However, at the airport Tui's representative was unhelpful. “They're telling us there are no hotels, so it looks like we'll be sleeping with the kids at the airport – that's outrageous,” she protested.
Even though Ms. Decroyer and Ms. Prendergast were sitting at the airport contemplating how to get home, flights full of tourists were still coming in.
Jess Bailey, a member of Devon County Council, landed on a Tui flight at 11:00 p.m. what she described on Twitter as “Chaos at Rhodes Airport”. ”:
Chaos at Rhodes airport tonight. @TUIUK why did you bring us and hundreds of other people when the hotels are cut off from the wildfires? Completely irresponsible. pic.twitter.com/aohutJbi5O
— Jess Bailey (@JessicaWestHill), July 22, 2023
Helen Tonks, COO from Cheshire, who landed at the same time, described it as a “living nightmare.”
“Five of us among hundreds of others slept on the school floor. The locals do everything, but no sound from you, no sound, ”she wrote in a tweet addressed to TUI.
On Sunday, Tui said it was suspending all its inbound passenger flights to Rhodes until Tuesday, but would fly empty planes to help evacuate tourists.
Responding to Ms Tonks' tweet, she said: “We didn't know the local authorities had to evacuate our customers upon arrival at the airport. Prior to the departure of the customers, the flights proceeded as usual. Our priority is the safety of our customers, and we will continue to do our best to help those affected.”
Jet2 said its team teams are “working hard to comply with guidance from local authorities, and we continue to bring more customer assistants and colleagues to the area to provide additional assistance.”
The company said it would send five empty planes to the island to bring customers home.
Rhodes Q&A: How to get a refund
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Department (FCDO) said: “We are actively monitoring the fires in Rhodes and are in close contact with local authorities.” whose safety is our top priority. They will be based at Rhodes International Airport to assist with travel documents and liaise with Greek authorities and tour operators on the ground.
“UK citizens based in Rhodes should contact their tour operator first for any questions regarding rescheduled flights and continue to check our updated Gov.uk travel advice for information.”
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