Flights to Rhodes have been cancelled and tourists left in limbo after wildfires spreading across the Greek island forced thousands to flee hotels.
Holiday company Jet2 cancelled five flights to Rhodes, while TUI cancelled all flights there until Wednesday.
The deputy mayor of Rhodes, Athanasios Vyrinis said some people had slept in cardboard boxes overnight and warned that there are not enough essentials.
Officials estimate about 19,000 people have been evacuated by land and sea.
One family has resorted to sleeping on mattresses on a conference room floor, while others are desperately searching for alternative accommodation.
Greece’s fire service has apologised and warned the situation could worsen.
A further 1,200 will be evacuated from three villages – Pefki, Lindos and Kalathos.
Rhodes has been battling wildfires fanned by strong winds since Tuesday, as Europe deals with a challenging heatwave.
Jet2 said all flights to Rhodes up to and including next Sunday were cancelled, but planes would still bring tourists back home from the island.
EasyJet said flights were operating as normal, but package holidays to the island were cancelled until Wednesday.
Ryanair said flights to Rhodes were still running and not affected by the wildfires.
A British Airways flight scheduled for Monday will still be running to bring tourists home, said the operator, adding that customers either already in Rhodes or due to fly out could change their flights free of charge.
Thomas Cook said it currently had 300 customers in Rhodes, 40 of which had been evacuated, and any holidays in the affected areas scheduled between before 31 July would be cancelled. But customers who had holidays booked in unaffected areas of Rhodes would still be able to travel if they wished to.
https://emp.bbc.com/emp/SMPj/2.49.3/iframe.htmlMedia caption,
Watch: Residents flee burning homes in Rhodes
Deputy mayor Mr Vyrinis said: “There is only water and some rudimentary food – we don’t have mattresses and beds.”
Speaking to Open TV from an assembly point, the deputy mayor said people were using cardboard boxes to sleep in and people arriving in Rhodes had nowhere to stay.
Lesley Young – who arrived in Lindos, Rhodes on Saturday morning – said she could not go to their hotel because it had been evacuated.
Despite having holiday insurance worth £2,000 to use for alternative accommodation, Ms Young said: “We have not been able to find anything at all.”
“So we have been taken to the sister hotel of the one we booked and they have set up mattresses on the floor of one of their conference rooms.
“They have really tried to do the best but we have no idea how long we will be in this situation.”
Ms Young, who is on holiday as a group of seven including three children and four adults, said they had a two week holiday booked but was unsure if they would stay that long.
“Luckily we have our luggage and the children are jumping up and down on the mattresses,” she added.
A couple on their honeymoon said they had been moved from a beach, where they were stranded with thousands of other people, by the Greek army in the early hours of Sunday.
