2023-07-23 02:13:04
30,000 people brought to safety from fires on the holiday island of Rhodes
Burned parts of a hotel in Kiotari on Rhodes
© AFP
On the Greek holiday island of Rhodes, around 30,000 people have been brought to safety from a forest fire that has been raging for days. More than 2,000 of them, including numerous vacationers, were picked up by ships from the beaches on Saturday, the Greek coast guard said. In addition, dozens of buses were used for the evacuations. Some tourists had to make their way on foot because of roads blocked by flames.
The evacuations continued on Sunday night. “This is not a fire that will be over tomorrow or the day following tomorrow,” fire department spokesman Vassilis Varthakogiannis told Skai TV. The fire on Rhodes will “make us difficult for days”.
According to the Greek broadcaster ERT, firefighters had to seek shelter near Lardos in the Ypseni monastery. There they tried once more to persuade the monks to leave the facility.
Regional governor Georgios Hadjimarkos said on Skai TV that evacuations have been complicated by road links cut by the blaze. Refugee vacationers, as well as some locals, were housed in gymnasiums, school buildings and hotel conference centers for the night.
According to the coast guard, more than 2,000 people were picked up by ships from the beaches of Kiotari and Lardos in the east of the Mediterranean island and taken to another, safer beach on the island. More than 30 private vessels were involved in this evacuation operation, led by three Coast Guard vessels.
A Greek Navy ship was on its way to the disaster area to help with the rescue operations, the coast guard said. Dozens of buses were also sent to rescue the people. In Kiotari, the fire damaged three hotels.
Tourists had been walking to the beaches since the evacuation alert was sounded early that morning. Video footage shows some walking with young children under the scorching sun.
According to media reports, some of the holidaymakers who have now been evacuated had missed their flights from the island because the flames had cut off normal transport connections. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Athens said it had activated its crisis team to help evacuate foreign visitors.
The great fire on Rhodes has been raging for almost a week. He had erupted on a mountain in the center of the island. Five helicopters and around 200 firefighters were deployed to fight the fire.
Greece is currently suffering from an extreme heat wave. Temperatures of over 44 degrees were predicted for this weekend. Numerous forest fires are currently raging in the country. According to the fire department, 46 new fires broke out within 24 hours.
Greece is just one of many countries around the world struggling with a prolonged period of extreme heat. In the United States, the weather service warned around 80 million residents of temperatures of 41 degrees and more for this weekend. More than 46 degrees were predicted for Phoenix, Arizona, which is currently suffering the longest heat wave since weather records began.
In Death Valley, California, 500 kilometers away, the hottest place on earth, tourists have been taking selfies with the temperature display in front of the visitor center for days. Many hope that the global heat record from July 2013 of 56.7 degrees Celsius will be broken – which, according to many experts, is due to an incorrect measurement.
Disaster tourism in Death Valley poses risks to life and limb: just a few days ago, a 71-year-old man from Los Angeles collapsed in front of the toilet on a hiking trail in the national park and died.
A forest fire in Washington state destroyed more than 12,000 hectares of land in one day over the weekend. Almost a thousand forest fires are still raging in neighboring Canada. In this year’s particularly intense wildfire season in Canada, 11.3 million hectares of land have already burned down.
According to scientists, extreme weather events such as heat waves are increasing in intensity and frequency as a result of climate change.
yb
AFP
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