Greece begins mass evacuation from wildfire-hit Rhodes

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Greece evacuated its largest-ever island this weekend, moving some 19,000 people to Rhodes to escape wildfires that have caused some tour operators to cancel flights to the popular destination.

Evacuees were rescued from resorts and villages in the path of the fires on Saturday and Sunday and offered temporary accommodation at schools, convention centers and indoor stadiums, according to Greek officials.

It is the sixth consecutive day of wildfires in Rhodes, as the region experiences a second heat wave in less than a week, with temperatures expected to reach 45 degrees in some parts of the country on Sunday, according to the Greek Meteorological Service.

The unprecedented evacuation operation this weekend involved Greek coast guard ships and about 40 private boats carrying some 3,000 people from the worst-hit southeastern part of the island to safer areas.

“We now have between 4,000 and 5,000 people in different structures,” Rhodes’ deputy mayor Athanasios Virinis told Greek television on Sunday, calling for donations of essential goods.

Schools were evacuated overnight and tourists flooded in who had just arrived on the island to find that their hotels and villas were unsafe. “There are people who arrived on flights in the middle of the night, and we pick them up at the schools,” Virinis said. “We don’t have the infrastructure to host so many people.”

Evacuations took place from 12 villages and several hotels, with no casualties reported. According to government officials, the affected area accounts for about 10 percent of the island’s tourist accommodation.

Passengers who flew to Rhodes on Saturday night were found in evacuation centers soon after arriving on the island. “Why did you fly us and hundreds of others when hotels have lost contact due to forest fires? Totally irresponsible,” said Jess Baileywrote a British tourist in an angry tweet addressed to tour operator Tui.

Tour operators Jet2 and Tui canceled flights departing for Rhodes on Sunday. “We appreciate how distressing and difficult it is for the customers who have been pulled,” Tui said on Sunday. “The safety and well-being of our customers and teams remains our top priority.”

Jet2 canceled all flights and holidays departing for Rhodes until 30 July, saying: “We believe this is the right thing to do for everyone.”

EasyJet said its flights to Rhodes were still operating, but now passengers flying out until July 29 can transfer to a later date or obtain flight vouchers, while some package holidays have been cancelled.

“We know the situation is currently very difficult for many people in Rhodes, so we are doing everything we can to help and provide support to customers,” EasyJet said on Sunday.

Ryanair said on Sunday morning that its flights to the island were still “operating normally and unaffected by the wildfires”.

Greek officials said the mass evacuation was made possible after the country introduced in 2019 a system that sends an emergency notification to all mobile phones in the affected area.