Greece Rhodes Fire: More then 10,000 British people are reported to be on the Greek island, and vacation companies are trying to send them home.
After the fires threatened holiday resorts, tourists have been sleeping at the airport, makeshift rescue centres, and on the street.
Parts of Corfu and Evia are under smaller evacuation orders.
EasyJet and Jet2 intend to send repatriation flights to Rhodes on Monday, while Tui customers returned on three dedicated flights overnight.
Many thousands of British visitors visit Greece each year, but many report being trapped in a nightmare.
Many people were forced to abandon their things and evacuate on foot as fires moved from the island’s heart to resorts on its eastern shore.
Because hotels on the island are all booked, some people have had to sleep on mattresses in emergency shelters.
Holidaymaker James Jones told the BBC at Birmingham Airport after returning from Rhodes that he and his family fled when hotel personnel instructed them to “get to the beach.”
We had to abandon their belongings on the sand while waiting for help from the coastguard, he explained, adding, “As you looked behind you, it was coming over the mountains, the fire was just moving so fast, it was horrific.”
Mr Jones claimed others were using their shirts as makeshift masks to keep the smoke out, and he advised his children to “get away from anything flammable and get on the rocks, stay near the water.”
Greece has experienced scorching weather in recent weeks, with temperatures topping 40 degrees Celsius across the country, and flames have raged in some regions for nearly a week.
Since Tuesday, Rhodes has been battling fires fuelled by strong winds, and over 19,000 people have been evacuated in what Greek authorities claim is the largest operation of its sort they have ever carried out.
A fire department spokesman told the AFP news agency that some 2,500 people have been evacuated from Corfu, which is 1,027 kilometres (670 miles) away.
Boats were used to rescue people off beaches, although officials informed the BBC that the situation is not as bad as it was on Rhodes.
Fires broke out in northern Corfu over the weekend, forcing residents to flee Santa, Megoula, Porta, Palia, Perithia, and Sinies.
The Greek tourism minister, Olga Kefalo O-Gianni, told the BBC that the situation on Corfu is “not alarming” and that tourists who want to visit sections of Corfu or Rhodes that have not been affected by the flames should do so.
Firefighters are also battling fires on Evia, Greece’s second largest island, and several areas have been evacuated, according to the state news agency ANA-MPA.
A national holiday scheduled for Monday in Greece has been cancelled.
On Sunday, the UK Foreign Office updated its travel advice for Greece, saying that “the situation can change quickly, so you should stay up to date with official advice.”
It has recommended people to follow the advice of emergency services and to dial 112 if there is an urgent threat.
To aid UK nationals, a team of British diplomats and Red Cross employees has been dispatched to Rhodes airport.
Foreign Office Minister Andrew Mitchell stated that between 7,000 and 10,000 British tourists are on Rhodes, and the government is constantly updating travel advice.
Despite local efforts, he told Today that there is a “inevitable degree of chaos” on the ground, and that it is “too early to condemn” vacation businesses for their response.
Mr Mitchell called the fires “unquestionably a wake-up call” on climate change, adding, “It is critical that the world combat it, and Britain is playing a leading role in doing so.”
The cause of the flames is unknown, although severe heat and dry weather in Greece have aided in their spread.
Chariton Koutscouris, the area’s tourism director, claimed arson was suspected and the fire service had been notified that someone was planning to intentionally ignite a fire.
He blamed the fires on a “group of people” who “get pleasure out of this with the pain of the other people.”
The Hellenic Red Cross’ Maria Feggou told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that the situation on Rhodes is a “nightmare,” but that the island would return to normalcy soon.
The Greek government is attempting to assist, she noted, but due to the size of the flames, “they cannot provide as much help as we would like because they must be everywhere.”
George Tsuchnikas, a British resident on the island, told the same programme that he has taken in families from Germany, Sweden, Norway, and Ireland.
He described evacuated visitors as “devastated, tired, and unsure of what will happen next,” adding that “lack of communication and information is the major problem, but people are doing what they can.”
“It was really bad – we got out on Saturday night and it was carnage at the airport,” said Jack Askin, who arrived at East Midlands airport on a scheduled Ryanair flight returning from Rhodes.
Connie Woods, 18, of Newry, Northern Ireland, was staying in a school for the second night after being evacuated from the Pefki Island hotel on Sunday.
Ms Woods claimed hundreds of people were already staying at the overcrowded school, and more were expected, adding, “So many young children, families with no luggage, newborn babies.” It’s dreadful.”
The Greek fire department has warned that the situation could worsen as more settlements are evacuated.
Athanasios Vyrinis, Rhodes’ deputy mayor, said that people were being forced to sleep in cardboard boxes and that there were not enough supplies.
Despite the ground situation, flights to the island have resumed, with some customers arriving late on Saturday to discover their hotels already evacuated.
What are vacation firms doing to assist?
In addition to its nine planned flights between Rhodes and the UK, EasyJet announced two rescue flights with a total of 421 seats on Monday and a third on Tuesday.
Jet2 is operating three repatriation flights, all of which are scheduled to depart tonight and return to Manchester, Leeds Bradford, and Birmingham. All flights and vacations to Rhodes have been cancelled, but aircraft with no passengers will be flown there to bring people back.
British Airways said its flights to Rhodes were operating normally, but clients who needed to return early may do so for free, and anyone who did not want to fly there in the next week from the UK could postpone their departure.
Thomas Cook said it had cancelled some trips to affected areas and was offering full refunds. It also stated that certain customers scheduled to travel to other regions of the country on Monday and Tuesday were being called and given the option to cancel and be refunded if they so desired.
Tui flew three “dedicated flights” back from Rhodes overnight, and all flights to the island have been postponed until Wednesday; however, clients who are presently in Rhodes will return home on their scheduled flights.