Crete Wildfires Force Thousands to Flee

Crete wildfires have forced thousands of people to leave homes, hotels and tourist spots on the Greek island as strong winds keep the blaze burning out of control. Officials said about 8,000 people were evacuated overnight in the Rethymno region before later being allowed to return, while fire crews continued to battle a fire that spread quickly through one of Crete’s busiest tourist areas.

The fire broke out on Wednesday near Krya Vrysi and has since moved rapidly through parts of Rethymno, destroying homes and agricultural land. Gusts on the island reached 125km/h, and local officials said the wind made containment efforts much harder. Rethymno deputy regional governor Maria Lioni said there was still no clear picture of the damage, and that stopping the fire was the main priority. She described Wednesday as a dark day for the region and said overnight winds reached force 11 on the Beaufort scale, which is classed as violent.

The human cost has already been severe. Two firefighters died on the island on Wednesday after becoming trapped while working on a fire near Krya Vrysi. A third firefighter died on the Greek mainland near the port town of Gytheio in the Peloponnese. Hellenic Fire Service chief Theodoros Vagias named the two men who died in Crete as Emmanouil Stratidakis, who was 58, and Pantelis Diamantakis, who was 25, and offered condolences for their deaths.

People who were evacuated from Rethymno were moved in some cases to a temporary shelter. One visitor, Bianca Boorer, said she was staying in the coastal resort of Agios Pavlos with her mother on a yoga retreat when the fire moved fast. She told the BBC’s Your Voice that people were told to get into cars and leave, but few had transport. She said the place where they had breakfast, the Agios Pavlos hotel and the yoga space had all burned down.