Rhodes holiday has become a survival exercise – Newmarket family

By Katy Lewis

BBC News, Suffolk

A woman who is holidaying in Rhodes has said she was “absolutely petrified” amid “falling ash” and “orange skies” as wildfires spread across the island.

Katie Piercefield-Holmes and her family, from Newmarket in Suffolk, decided to lock themselves in the Princess Andriana hotel in Kiotari.

She said she had woken up “every half hour” last night and was packed and ready to run to the beach.

It has been “surreal” and “almost apocalyptic”, she added.

Mrs Piercefield-Holmes said it was “like something out of a movie, with abandoned suitcases everywhere”.

“When the tree opposite us caught fire I was ready to leave and I would have, but my husband was able to evaluate and assess what was best for our family and the risks of staying as opposed to going.

“So we stayed put and now we are very happy we made that decision,” she said.

Rhodes has been battling wildfires fanned by strong winds since Tuesday, as Europe deals with a heatwave.

More than 3,500 people have been evacuated by land and sea to safety and many tourists have been left in limbo, with thousands fleeing hotels.

Katie and Brett Piercefield-Holmes, their two children, aged 11 and seven, and Mr Piercefield-Holmes’ parents, are gathering in a ground floor room with a pool, as they thought it safer to be near water.

Fire on the hillside behind the Princess Andriana destroyed some of the hotel’s buildings, including the kids club and sports facilities, but two other hotels on the hill have burned down.

Mrs Piercefield-Holmes said that on Saturday there had been “lots of ash coming down in the night but breakfast was fine” but “around lunchtime the sky was orange and brown”.

“I went to the gym but when I got out there was carnage in reception,” she said.

“People were rushing around… we heard a local town was being evacuated.”

She said they received a national alert saying the area was being evacuated and were initially told to leave the hotel.

“We could see hundreds of people passing down the beach shouting for water,” she said, “We rushed out to give water and wet towels.

“But there was thick smoke so we decided to lock ourselves in rather than leave.

“Then the wind shifted so we’re glad we took that decision.”

Mrs Piercefield-Holmes admitted that she was “absolutely petrified” but her husband, who had 20 years of training in the US airforce, said they should stay and monitor what was happening.

“We slept in our clothes in case we had to run and had the curtains open,” she said.

The blaze has now “moved well back” and the hotel has told the family to continue to stay where they are.

“At the moment we are trying to make the most of it for the children,” Mrs Piercefield-Holmes said.

She said they had found some drinks and a “plate of sandwiches” and “some fruit” but feared what happened next.

She added: “This is not a vacation, it’s a survival exercise.

“My husband retired in May and this was supposed to be our family holiday to celebrate his retirement – it’s not turned out how we envisaged but the main thing is we’re safe.

“We feel very sorry for those who are sleeping on the floor or families that have been split up and we count ourselves quite fortunate.”

She said she had received generic messages from tour operator Jet2, telling them to follow local advice, keep their phones on and call the company’s helpline if needed.

“I had already done that and been on hold for 45 mins,” she said, adding she had given up and the family were just “sitting it out”.

The manager has told them the hotel should be able to reopen in a couple of days but things would not be completely back to normal as some buildings have burned down.

“Ideally I’d like to move but I’m practical,” she said.

“It’s peak holiday season and thousands of people are displaced so they won’t be able to relocate us.”

Jet2 said its “absolute priority” was the “health, safety and wellbeing of customers and colleagues in the affected area” and it had cancelled all flights and holidays that were due to depart to Rhodes.

In a statement it added that it was “contacting all customers in affected areas as quickly as possible by telephone so that we can support them with what they need”.

“We are sending direct communications to affected customers to let them know this, and to remind them of our 24/7 Customer Helpline number.”

It added that the situation was “under constant review”.

Follow East of England news on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Got a story? Email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp us on 0800 169 1830

Related Topics