Greece wildfires: ‘We got on the bus with people clambering to get on but no idea where it was taking us’

A Dublin family has described having to sleep on concrete floors and on the street outside an evacuation building due to wildfires raging in Greece.

The Cullen family arrived in Pefkos, a beach resort on Rhodes, on July 15th and were among thousands of other tourists and residents who were forced to shelter in schools and indoor stadiums on Sunday after they were evacuated from coastal villages and resorts.

Speaking to The Irish Times on Monday, Sally Cullen described being told to head for the beach on Saturday at about midnight due to the blazes. The family were “told to leave belongings at the hotel and take essentials only”, she said.

Two hours later, Ms Cullen, her husband and two children were taken by coach to an evacuation centre more than an hour away in northern Rhodes. The family had made the trip with travel agency TUI, but Ms Cullen said they had not heard from their representative while the area was being evacuated.

Rescue worker killed and train derailed in Bavaria flooding

---

Even rollercoasters in the sky will not jolt us out of our complacency on climate change

---

Flushing old medicines down the toilet can make the planet sick, so how should you dispose of them?

---

Climate activist arrested after defacing Monet’s Poppy Field in Paris museum

---

“We got on the bus with people clambering to get on but no idea where it was taking us. We arrived at a school and slept on a concrete floor,” she said.

“The next morning locals came with water and biscuits, and the TUI rep arrived and said they would do what they could. A local lady approached me and gave us a lift to another school, which she said was better organised. There were TUI reps there but all they said was they were doing their best. Locals brought food and toiletries and toys for the kids. They were amazing.”

The family hoped to return to retrieve their luggage from their hotel, or to be moved to a different hotel, but were told it was not safe. She said they were advised by TUI that they could not be assisted if they made their own way back.

[ Thousands helped to safety as fire causes havoc on Rhodes and new wildfire emerges in Corfu ]

Ms Cullen slept outside the school building on Sunday night as it was “too hot inside” and she and her family decided to return to their hotel after being offered a lift by a local volunteer.

“It is currently very windy with some smoke. The hotel has no water and limited electricity but at least we have a bed, a pillow, our belongings and privacy. The hotel have promised to keep us updated,” she said.

TUI said on Monday evening it has cancelled all outbound flights to Rhodes up to and including Friday.. July 28th, and has also cancelled holidays for customers travelling to impacted hotels up to and including Sunday, July 30th.

All flight only customers due to travel on these flights will receive full refunds. Package holiday customers will have the option to amend their booking or cancel with a full refund, the travel firm said.

Passengers due to travel up to and including July 30th for all areas of Rhodes will be offered a fee free amend to another holiday or the option to cancel for a full refund. 

It said it is still operating flights from Rhodes back to Ireland as scheduled.

Irish citizens are being advised to be alert and stay away from the affected areas and to move rapidly out of any areas affected. Irish citizens should call the Greek emergency services on 112 if they are in immediate danger. People should turn mobile phones on to roaming, to receive alerts from local authorities.

Anyone in need of consular assistance can call the Embassy of Ireland in Greece on +30 2107232771 or the Honorary Consulate of Ireland in Rhodes on +30 2241075655. If in Ireland, the Department of Foreign Affairs can be contacted on 01 4082527.