Dozens of tourists, mostly from Britain, were rescued from a burning tourist boat after it went up in flames on Thursday off the Greek island of Rhodes.
The inferno engulfed the entire boat after flames broke out about 300 meters from Stenga Beach in the town of Archangelos.
Passengers told of how they were forced to make the plunge into the water below as the entire wooden deck where they were standing started to catch fire.
The Greek coast guard said all 82 passengers were eventually taken to land, but children were still left ‘traumatized’ by the horrifying ordeal.
Only ruins remained as the ship was entirely destroyed late yesterday evening as it later sank into the Greek waters.
People jumped into the sea as the tourist boat was engulfed in flames
The blaze initially broke out late on Thursday afternoon with the fire service immediately called to the scene.
As many jumped into the sea while others were rescued from the vessel, flames quickly tore through the ship covering it from stern to bow.
Shaun Williams, a 55-year-old aircraft engineer from St. Ives, Cornwall told the Daily Mail he and his family were wanting to take a boat trip while on their holiday.
He said they were around half an hour into the trip when they stopped at Stenga beach for snorkeling.
“We were on the top deck and the crew started shouting but we could not understand,” Williams told the British tabloid said. “We then saw the smoke.
“The crew tried to fight the fire but the boat was made of wood and the fire grew quickly. They started handing out life jackets and a minute later the captain said we all need to get in the sea.”
He continued: “There were families with young children and a lot of panic. We could not get down the stairs and had to climb over the top banister and drop to the lower deck.
“It is then I saw the fire and realized how bad it was.”
He said he told his “family to get in the water now and shouted at others to do the same.”
After the boat sank, Greece’s Central Port Authority said they would take measures to deal with the marine pollution.
Authorities said all passengers were in good health and were later transferred to their hotels by bus.
In late May a British tourist was struck by lightning and killed on Rhodes. The 26-year-old man was swimming at around 14:00 during a thunderstorm.
The tourist ignored the advice of other swimmers to exit the water and was struck by lightning and killed.
See all the latest news from Greece and the world at Greekreporter.com. Contact our newsroom to report an update or send your story, photos and videos. Follow GR on Google News and subscribe here to our daily email!
