NI newlyweds describe honeymoon heartache on fire-ravaged Rhodes
A newlywed couple from Northern Ireland who travelled to Rhodes for their honeymoon have spoken of their distress as wildfires continue to spread.
Jamie McCafferty and his wife Hannah are among the thousands of holidaymakers now left stranded on the Greek islands.
They arrived in Rhodes on Saturday evening but instead of being taken to their hotel, they were brought to an evacuation centre.
"We were coming out here for a honeymoon, it's supposed to be one of the happiest times of your life," Jamie told UTV.
"We are heartbroken. There's been a few tears here and there, but we're trying to stay positive now that we're hopefully getting home."
Up to 10,000 Britons are estimated to be on fire-ravaged Rhodes, with repatriation flights to rescue holidaymakers landing back in the UK.
People have told of being forced to sleep with hundreds of others in schools, airports and sports centres across the popular Greek island.
Others have vented their frustrations at travel firms for their lack of information about how the wildfires, which began to spread on Saturday, will affect their holiday plans.
It came as travel operator Tui confirmed that holidaymakers returned to the UK on "three dedicated flights" overnight, with plans to bring more back "as soon as possible" in place.<
Jet2 said a repatriation flight, carrying 95 passengers, landed at Leeds Bradford Airport on Sunday evening, before another three leave the island later on Monday.
Foreign Office minister Andrew Mitchell said it is "peak holiday season", with between 7,000 and 10,000 Britons estimated to be on the island.
He told Times Radio: "What we're telling people to do is to keep in touch with their tourist company, and that is the right advice."
Airline easyJet will operate two flights totalling 421 seats on Monday and a third on Tuesday, in addition to its nine scheduled flights to the Greek island.
Jet2 announced that hundreds will be repatriated via three separate flights to Manchester, Leeds Bradford and Birmingham later in the evening, in addition to more than 50 scheduled flights.
Meanwhile, a Foreign Office spokesman confirmed a Rapid Deployment Team has arrived on Rhodes to support travel operators in bringing Britons home.
The wildfire had been confined to the island's mountainous centre but, aided by winds, very high temperatures and dry conditions, it spread towards the coast on the island's central-eastern side.
An easyJet spokeswoman said the company is doing "all it can" to help customers in Rhodes and invited those due to travel to or from the island until Saturday to change the date for free.
A Tui spokeswoman said the firm's "main priority" is customers' safety and its staff are doing "all they can" to help those affected by the fires.
The firm later said: "We appreciate how distressing and difficult it's been for those who have been evacuated and ask that they continue to follow the advice of the local authorities and keep in touch with the Tui reps who are present in all evacuation centres. Our teams will be contacting customers with any updates as soon as they can.
"We have cancelled all outbound flights to Rhodes up to and including Tuesday, and passengers due to travel on these flights will receive full refunds.
"Passengers due to travel on Wednesday will be offered a fee-free amend to another holiday or the option to cancel for a full refund. We are still operating flights to bring those customers currently on holiday elsewhere in Rhodes home as planned."
Jet2, which has cancelled all flights and holidays due to depart to Rhodes up to and including Sunday, has "significantly increased" the number of its staff on the island.
Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know.