Rhodes fires: Hundreds back in UK after 'traumatic' Rhodes fires

Hundreds of holidaymakers person arrived backmost successful the UK connected repatriation flights from Rhodes arsenic wildfires proceed to grip the Greek island.

Passengers person been flying into airports including Gatwick, Heathrow, Stansted, Birmingham and Bristol passim Monday, with much expected.

Tourists were forced to fly hotels and slumber extracurricular arsenic fires dispersed towards resorts connected the eastbound coast.

As galore arsenic 10,000 Britons were estimated to beryllium staying successful Rhodes.

Tour operators and airlines person been sending repatriation flights to bring radical backmost to the UK implicit the past mates of days arsenic holidaymakers person been near with nary prime but to evacuate their accommodation and slumber successful schools, airports and sports centres.

Tui operated 3 repatriation flights connected Sunday, portion a 4th brought radical to the UK from Rhodes connected Monday, and different is scheduled for Tuesday morning.

EasyJet said it had operated 2 flights totalling 421 seats connected Monday and a 3rd would instrumentality spot connected Tuesday, on with 9 scheduled flights to the Greek island.

Jet2 added 4 repatriation flights had been scheduled for Monday nighttime aft 1 landed astatine Leeds Bradford Airport connected Sunday evening.

EasyJet and Tui person besides cancelled outbound bundle holidays to Rhodes until Saturday and Friday respectively.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak advised radical to support successful interaction with circuit operators oregon hotels if they were readying to question to areas affected by wildfires.

The premier minister's authoritative spokesperson said: "British nationals successful Rhodes should interaction their question relation successful the archetypal lawsuit for immoderate queries regarding the rescheduling of flights and proceed to cheque our updated gov.uk question proposal for information."

The Foreign Office has not advised against going to Rhodes, but added that it had sent six Foreign Office unit members and 4 British Red Cross responders to Rhodes International Airport to enactment with Greek authorities and question operators.

Claire and Paul Jones, some 36, from Leicestershire, were moved connected Saturday by manager from the Village Rhodes Beach Resort adjacent Lardos.

"It was truly rather traumatic driving to wherever we went due to the fact that you could spot everyone fleeing their hotels, and radical were walking on the beaches, walking on the roads, and they had babies and tiny children," Mrs Jones told the PA quality agency.

Daniel and Luna Rolfe's honeymoon implicit the play was chopped abbreviated erstwhile they were taken consecutive from the airdrome to an evacuation centre aft uncovering retired their accommodation successful the Lindos country of Rhodes had been evacuated due to the fact that of heavy smoke.

Mr Rolfe, 25, told BBC News: "It was packed. I couldn't archer you however galore radical were there. We walked past rather a fewer rooms and they were each packed."

The Glaswegian mates yet managed to find an Airbnb for the nighttime connected Sunday, but had to permission it connected Monday arsenic it was afloat booked.

Greece has seen temperatures exceeding 40C (104F) crossed the state successful caller weeks, which has resulted successful fires burning for astir a week successful immoderate areas.

Rhodes has been affected by wildfires for a week due to the fact that of beardown winds, with astir 19,000 radical being evacuated truthful far.

Elsewhere, astir 2,500 radical were evacuated from Corfu, immoderate 1,027km (670 miles) miles away, a occurrence section spokesperson told AFP quality agency.

Although the origin of the fires is unknown, the utmost temperatures, adust conditions and beardown winds crossed Greece person caused their spread.