Hugo Vieira, a Portuguese man who has lived with his wife in Greece for about six years, said TSF that the island of Rhodes lives in a “hell” since the fires began seven days ago. This Monday the fire continues to cause the evacuation of people. There will be more than 30 thousand and there have been power outages.
“We have had a power outage for about two hours and we are also having problems with the internet connection. Until two hours ago, the news that reached us was not the best, that is, we have three active fronts in the center and south of the island. New evacuation orders were issued to more towns. As far as we know there will be three to four towns in the south and, obviously, all the coastline and the resorts that are close to these towns. Tourist evacuation orders were also issued to the capital,” said Hugo Vieira.
Sadness, frustration and anger are the dominant feelings in the population before the destruction of the forest.
“In this particular case in which we find ourselves, on the island of Rhodes, which is one of the main tourist destinations not only in Greece but in Europe and the world, according to what we were told about 30 years ago there was also a forest fire, but fortunately it was contained. If you look at the map, the whole island from the center and the south is green, it’s an emerald green. In fact, it is one of the nicknames of the island in addition to the island of the knights, the island of the sun. I guarantee that the feeling here is one of suffering and anger, of frustration at what is happening. There are more questions than answers,” he said. TSF the portuguese.
Hugo Vieira points out that Rodas had one of the oldest and best preserved virgin forest areas in Europe. To date, there are no records of deaths, but one concern is the deer population on the Greek island.
“Give thanks, obviously, for there being no fatalities, but in relation to the huge population of deer, which is unique and native to this island, we don’t know what is happening to the animals.
The Portuguese resident in Greece adds that there is still food and water in the stores and that the population has been tireless in solidarity actions. Hugo Vieira and his wife have been providing support since the weekend and today they will once again bring water and food to the shelters.
“Whenever possible, we go back to the temporary shelters to check what is possible, to continue carrying water and supplies. In short, no help and at the moment it is small.
The Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that it has been in contact with 19 Portuguese in Greece. As the only residents on the island of Rhodes, Hugo Vieira and his wife expected to have been contacted by the Portuguese authorities, but that only happened after Hugo Vieira wrote a message on social media from the Portuguese Embassy in Greece.
The latest information shows three active fronts and none under control in this forest fire that has been burning for seven days. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Monday that Greece is “at war” against the wildfires raging in the country, which has “three more difficult days” ahead due to high temperatures.
Source: TSF
