Major tour operator suspends holidays to Rhodes fire hit resorts
TUI have announced that they are suspending a number of holidays to Rhodes until next month, amid devastating wildfires raging across the Greek island.
Along with EasyJet, the German travel company has been the only holiday groups to extend help for holidaymakers caught in the inferno.
Whilst EasyJet set on repatriation flights, TUI first cancelled all flights to the island, originally to tomorrow, but that has now been extended.
TUI are now not operating any flights to Rhodes until Friday 28 July, and are not operating holidays for customers to Rhodes to hotels that have been affected by the fires - mostly in the south of the island - up to and including August 11.
This comes as just today a plane sent in to battle the flames burning across Rhodes smashed into the ground, killing two people.
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A man amidst the horrific fires as they burn their way through the village of Gennadi, Rhodes (AFP via Getty Images)Footage emerged of the tragedy, which took place near Platanistos and Karystos, two villages in Evia, and an emergency response helicopter was quickly dispatched en route to the crash site to assess the situation.
Not every TUI holiday to Rhodes has been cancelled, as many to northern parts of the island are safe from the flames - but those hit by the flames have been pushed back now.
As holidaymakers flee from the flames, they have repeatedly said they have been left with little help from their booking companies or the British consulate.
Wildfires burn the forests near the village of Vati, in the southern part of Rhodes (AFP via Getty Images)Due to the fact the Foreign Office has not yet advised against travelling to Rhodes, not all tourists are guaranteed a refund, or help.
Whilst some groups, like TUI and EasyJet, have gone out of their way to help, many others still have not, leaving British holidaymakers out of pocket after they flee from the fires.
In a statement a spokesperson for TUI UK & Ireland said: "Our teams in Rhodes have been working tirelessly to support customers impacted by the wildfires in south-eastern parts of the island. Five repatriation flights have brought hundreds of customers home and we’re working hard to get everyone back as soon as we can.
"We appreciate how distressing and difficult it’s been for those who have been evacuated. We ask that they continue to follow the advice of the local authorities and keep in touch with our reps.
"We are not operating any outbound flights to Rhodes up to and including Friday 28th July. We are also not operating holidays for customers travelling to impacted hotels in the south up to and including Friday 11th August. We'll be in touch with customers directly if their hotels have been impacted or customers can contact us via our call centre or go to one of our TUI retail stores. 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.
Whilst tourists have been able to flee the island, locals have only been able to watch as their homes and lives go up in flames (Christoph Reichwein/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)"Passengers due to travel up to and including 30th July for all areas of Rhodes will be offered a fee free amend to another holiday or the option to cancel for a full refund.
"We are still operating flights from Rhodes back to the UK & Ireland as scheduled. The safety and well-being of our customers and teams remains our top priority."
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This all comes amidst a third terrifying heatwave gripping the country of Greece, seeing temperatures soar well past 40C.
Last night evacuations were carried out to take people to safety after the fires that have raged out of control for days.
The latest evacuation orders were issued on the islands of Corfu and Evia, while a blaze on the island of Rhodes continued to move inland, torching mountainous forest areas, including part of a nature reserve.
Desperate residents, many with wet towels around their necks to stave off the scorching heat, used shovels to beat back flames approaching their homes, while firefighting planes and helicopters resumed water drops at first light.
Authorities said that more than 20,000 people have been involved in successive evacuations on the island, mostly British tourists over the weekend, when fire swept through two coastal areas on the southeast of Rhodes.
The European Union has sent 500 firefighters, 100 vehicles and seven planes from 10 member states, while Turkey, Israel, Egypt and other countries have also sent help.
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