Thousands of tourists and residents fleeing a wildfire on the Greek island of Rhodes took shelter in schools and shelters today, with many evacuated by private boats as flames threatened resorts and coastal villages.
Thousands of people will spend the night on the beaches and in the streets during what Greece says is the biggest safe transport of residents and tourists in emergency conditions.
About 19.000 people were moved from their homes and hotels overnight, due to the fires that broke out last Wednesday, which penetrated the forests and descended to the resort on the southeast coast of the island.
Some tourists, Reuters reports, said they walked for kilometers in the heat to reach a safe place.
The fires left the forests destroyed, and dead animals were seen on the road next to burnt cars.
Fires are common in Greece, but climate change has led to more extreme heat waves across southern Europe and many parts of the world. Temperatures during the past week exceeded 40 degrees Celsius in many parts of Greece.
In addition to Rhodes, emergency services were dealing with fires on the island of Evia, east of Athens, and on the island of Corfu, where authorities ordered the evacuation of five small settlements as a precaution.
An official of the fire brigade said that the fires in Rhodes had affected 10 percent of the hotels in the central and southeastern parts of the island. The northern and western parts are not affected. Coast Guard vessels and private boats transported more than 3.000 tourists from the beaches on Saturday. Many people fled the hotel as huge flames reached the coastal villages of Kiotari, Genadi, Pefki, Lindos, Lardos and Kalatos.
British, Dutch, French and German nationals were among the tourists at Rhodes, which one hotelier said could accommodate 150.000 visitors at a time in peak season. About 125.000 citizens live on the island.
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