“It was a terribly horrible and terrible experience for the tourists, but it was harder for us because we live here. All of it has been torched.
The wildfires that have scorched the Greek island of Rhodes caught Edisa, a 19-year-old who lives in Lindos with her parents on the island’s southeast coast, in their path.
The family, who all work in the area’s several hotels, was compelled to leave their house over the weekend along with thousands of vacationers.
They were hiding from the sweltering heat on Glystra beach when we came across them. As Edisa spoke, a small yellow bird, one of the family’s pets that they had brought to safety, twittered noisily from its cage.Tourists recently enjoyed the sun and splashed around in the area’s sparkling blue water. All that is now left are the burning ruins of what once appeared to be a café and the burned-out shell of a nearby tourist attraction.
After all this, she predicts that tourists won’t want to return because it will take several years to repair the damage.
A tanned man wearing reflective sunglasses arrived to see the wreck of his water sports rental business as strong gusts blew the smell of smoke across the beach.
Takis Mitropoulos was pessimistic but resigned.
“We lost the contract. However, we are healthy and believe we can make it right again. We can solve everything if we are in good health.
But after that, he hurried out to answer a phone call. Once more, the fire was growing. Everyone in this area is on high alert and prepared for when the wind changes to blow in their direction.
According to Kyriakos Sarikas, the marketing manager for H Hotels collection, which has six facilities on Rhodes, everything is having a devastating influence on the local community.As we crossed a hotel’s spacious, cold lobby, our steps reverberated. Over the weekend, every visitor was ejected. But many local workers have also been forced to leave their homes, he continued. The authorities notified the evacuation of numerous other settlements as we were still speaking.
“We must have a strategy for ending this catastrophe and restoring the entire region. The nature outdoors is more essential than the hotel, which is just a hotel and can be rebuilt or painted because of the environmental disaster we are currently experiencing.
Fire trucks had gathered by the roadside as we headed back north, and thick smoke shrouded the forested hillsides to the west. A group of evacuees from the Malona village gathered to watch firemen battle to prevent the flames from destroying their houses and means of support, one holding a pair of binoculars.
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