UPDATED: Jet2, TUI cancel flights to Rhodes because of wildfire

Jet2  cancelled all flights and holidays to Rhodes on Sunday and holiday group TUI has cancelled all outbound flights to the Greek island up to and including on Tuesday because of a wildfire, the companies said in statements.

Jet2 said in a statement posted on Twitter: “We have cancelled all flights and holidays that are due to depart to Rhodes today (five flights in total) … We will fly those five aircraft to Rhodes with no customers onboard, so that we can bring customers back to the UK on their scheduled flights.”

TUI said on its website: “We have cancelled all outbound flights to Rhodes up to and including Tuesday 25th of July 2023.

Customers currently in Rhodes will return on their intended flight home.”

Ryanair says flights to and from Greek island Rhodes operating as normal

Ryanair said on Sunday that its flights to and from the Greek island of Rhodes are operating as normal and unaffected by a wildfire that forced thousands of tourists and residents to shelter in schools and indoor stadiums.

“Ryanair flights to/from Rhodes Airport are currently operating as normal and unaffected by the forest fires,” Ryanair said in a statement on its mobile phone app at 0907 GMT.

The Irish airline, Europe’s largest by passenger numbers, advised passengers departing Rhodes airport that it will accept temporary travel documentation issued by Greek Police and that it would notify passengers of any flight changes via its app.

A wildfire which has been raging on the Greek island of Rhodes for five days forced hundreds of people to flee affected villages and beaches by land and sea on Saturday, authorities said.

Coastguard vessels and more than 30 private boats evacuated at least 2,000 people, including tourists, from beaches close to the areas of Kiotari and Lardos in the southeastern part of the island, coastguard spokesman Nikos Alexiou told Skai television.

He said an operation was ongoing to evacuate about 600 people from beaches in Kiotari and Gennadi towards Plimmiri.

Authorities have also urged about 1,000 people to leave the villages of Pefki, Lindos and Kalathos as flames approached, fire brigade spokesperson Vassilis Vathrakogiannis said. Firefighters, backed by air water bombers and reinforcements by Slovakia, struggled with new outbreaks of the wildfire, which was fanned by strong winds.

Greek television showed crowds of tourists with their luggage walking along a road as part of an evacuation operation, while smoke could be seen in the background.

“We had set up firebreaks around the village of Laerma last night, but a 180-degree change of the winds this morning helped the fire grow much bigger across many kilometres … reaching a tourist area,” Konstantinos Taraslias, a deputy mayor of Rhodes, told Open TV.

Those evacuated are being housed at an indoor stadium and at hotels on the island, Taraslias said. Three passenger ferries will also host tourists during the night, the coastguard said. The fire has scorched swathes of dense forest since breaking out in a mountainous area on Tuesday.

It damaged at least three hotels in the seaside village of Kiotari on Saturday, according to the Athens News Agency. Civil protection authorities have warned of a very high risk of wildfires on Rhodes and many other areas in Greece on Sunday, as temperatures were expected to hit 45 Celsius (113 Fahrenheit) amid a heatwave.

Senior government officials will travel to Rhodes to assist the situation. The Greek foreign ministry activated its crisis management unit to offer assistance to foreigners who want to leave the country, it said on Saturday.

Fires are common in Greece but hotter, drier and windy summers have turned the country into a wildfire hotspot in recent years. Meteorologists have warned that the current sweltering temperatures are expected to last until the end of the month.