Forest Fire on the Greek Island of Rhodes, 3 People Die
Forest fire on the Greek island of Rhodes, 3 people died. This fire also spread to the islands of Corfu and Evia.
 |
| A firefighter tries to extinguish a wildfire in Asklipio village on Rhodes island (Photograph: Aristidis Vafeiadakis/Zuma/Shutterstock) |
As reported by AFP, Wednesday (07/26/2023), two pilots were reportedly killed when their water bomber crashed while battling the flames. In addition to the two pilots, a person was also found charred on the island of Evia, Greece on Tuesday (25/7).
Following the death of a Greek air force pilot, Greece is in mourning for three days
Greece's fire department said the Canadair plane crashed into a ravine near where the fire started on Sunday. Footage on state TV's ERT showed the plane cutting through a tree before it crashed first and exploded.
The pilot was a member of the Greek air force. Greece's defense ministry said it had declared a three-day mourning period.
Also, read: Christopher Columbus' Lost Stolen Letter Finally Returned to Italy.
"They lost lives, saved lives," Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said in a statement.
In addition to the two pilots, another man was also found dead. However, until now it is not clear who the man is.
DNA tests will be needed to confirm whether this is a shepherd missing since Sunday, according to Konstantina Dimoglidou, a Greek police spokeswoman.
Greek firefighters continue to battle wildfires that have now spread from the tourist island of Rhodes to Corfu and Evia. In addition, several other blazes are also rumored to be active across the country.
The Civil Protection Ministry had warned about the "extreme danger" of fires in six of the country's 13 regions on Wednesday.
Hopefully the information about "forest fires on the Greek Island of Rhodes, 3 people died" is useful and the forest fires can soon subside.