Family trapped in wildfire hell slept in stadium in swimwear after luggage lost

23 July 2023 , 19:19

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Evacuees sit inside a stadium following their evacuation (Image: AP)

A woman trapped on Rhodes has told how she and her family were stranded for hours in just their swimwear after being forced to abandon their belongings at their hotel.

Claire McNally had been staying with her two daughters at the Olive Garden Resort in Lardos on the Greek island when the wildfire hit on Saturday.

The forest blaze has now been burning for six days, but spread from a rural area to the resorts of Kiotari and Lardos on Saturday morning, engulfing hotels and forcing people to flee on boats, buses and on foot.

The McNally family were initially told by hotel staff to stay put despite receiving the emergency text urging them to evacuate, but at 2pm on Saturday they were directed to leave behind their belongings and head straight to the beach.

"We were left there until 5pm with no updates at all," Claire told The Mirror. "We got a text from Jet2 saying everything was fine and to stay in our hotel, after we’d already been evacuated."

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Thousands of tourists have now been evacuated from their hotels in the Kiotari and Lardos resorts (AP)

"At 5pm we were told we were being taken by bus to [nearby town] Lindos where it was safe, and we’d then be brought back after about five hours. We were literally dropped off at Lindos bus station with no information at all."

It wasn't until 8pm on Saturday that Claire and her daughters were told they'd be moved further north where it would be safer, waiting over three hours to get onto a coach put on by Jet2.

The family spent the night in a basketball stadium, she said, sleeping on mattresses on the floor while some had to rest in the venue's seats. "The local people have really rallied round though to help as much as possible," she added.

Claire and her family were terrified after having left their luggage at the hotel two hours away. She added: "As you can imagine it’s been stressful and we’re very hot and tired, with no change of clothes, still wearing only bikinis and shorts."

Claire and her daughters spent the night on a mattress in a basketball stadium which was being used as an evacuation centre (AP)

So scared were the family at one point during the upheaval, Claire's daughter suffered panic attacks in the chaos.

The three eventually managed to get to airport on Sunday afternoon but were still without their luggage.

She added: "I’m not sure Jet2 are doing much to get it to us yet. I do think the roads into Lardos [are] still closed though.

"Jet2 have brought nine reps from the UK to the airport to assist and they are being as helpful as possible. The flight they flew over on has been turned around and they are allowing passengers who want to leave early to fly back to Leeds Bradford on it."

The family were stuck in the 'packed' airport without their belongings on Sunday (AFP via Getty Images)

Jet2 confirmed earlier on Sunday that all outbound flights to Rhodes would be cancelled up until July 30 as fire services on the island battled to put out the blaze, which has been described as the worst of several to hit the country in recent days amidst record-breaking temperatures and high winds.

Police on the island also said on Sunday that they were probing early indications the fire may have even been started deliberately.

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Vassilis Vathrakogiannis, a representative from the Rhodes Fire Department, told media: "Fires are set by human hands. Whether it is due to negligence or fraud will be seen (but) people have been summoned for statements and others will be summoned.

"As soon as we have complete information - because the investigation is in full swing, we will make announcements."

Early indications suggest the fire could have been started deliberately

A spokesperson for Jet2 said: "The situation in Rhodes continues to evolve quickly, and our absolute priority is the health, safety and well-being of customers and colleagues in the affected areas.

"Due to these extraordinary circumstances, we have cancelled all flights and holidays that are due to depart to Rhodes up to and including Sunday 30^th July. We believe this is the right thing to do for everyone, and we will be contacting affected customers with regards to their refund and rebooking options.

"We will fly those aircraft to Rhodes with no customers onboard, so that we can continue to bring customers back to the UK on their scheduled flights."

Susie Beever