Hotels are being evacuated on the Greek island of Rhodes due to nearby forest fires, with hundreds of tourists having been taken to safety on Saturday by coastguard buses and boats.
The fire has mainly affected hotels in the coastal villages of Kiotari and Lardos, which are located around 55 kilometres south of the city of Rhodes.
According to a fire service spokesperson, the fire is difficult to fight. The fire has reportedly been burning for five consecutive days.
Three coastguard boats are leading the operation, which involved more than 20 private boats, while a Greek navy vessel was heading for the area.
Around a thousand people have already been evacuated to another beach, according to the media. Five helicopters and 173 firefighters were deployed to fight the blaze. Three hotels in the Kiotari area have suffered damage.
Videos on social media show hundreds of tourists leaving the affected resorts with their luggage while walking along main roads in the heat, in what has been described online as "apocalyptic" scenes.
"I’m in Rhodes. we’ve had an emergency evacuation alarm 3 times today. The last wildfire is a mile away. People are piling in after walking for 10 miles," one Twitter user said.
The region around Rhodes is experiencing strong winds of force six.
“The smoke is so thick that you can hardly breathe. People are taken to the town of Gennadi from where they will be transferred to other hotels,” Konstantinos Traraslias, deputy mayor of Rhodes told Athens news channel Skai.
Tourists still on the island are being told not to panic as evacuations are being undertaken as a safety precaution.
According to ERT tv, firefighters had to take refuge in the Ypseni monastery, near Lardos. The firefighters and their commander remained trapped in the monastery as they tried to convince the nuns inside to leave.
According to the deputy fire chief, Yannis Artapoios, this fire, which started on a mountain in the centre of the island, is the most difficult the Rhodes fire brigade has ever faced.
Greece is currently experiencing an exceptionally long heatwave, with temperatures expected to exceed 44°C this weekend.
