A Greek Air Force water-dropping plane crashed while swooping into a wildfire in southern Greece on Tuesday, killing both pilots while authorities battled the blazes amid recurring heat waves.
The crash occurred on the island of Euboea and was featured on a state television program in which the low-flying CL-215 plane disappeared into a ravine before a fireball was seen moments later.
According to the Air Force, both pilots died in the crash, aged 34 and 27. The plane did not have an ejection system.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis canceled a visit to Cyprus scheduled for Wednesday and a three-day mourning for the Greek armed forces was declared.
“They offered their lives to save lives,” Mitsotakis said of the pilots.
Footage aired on Tuesday showed the plane battling wildfires on the Greek island of Euboea (pictured) before disappearing behind a hilltop and down a ravine
Seconds later, a fireball exploded. Officials said two people were on board at the time
“They proved the dangers of their day-to-day work putting out fires… In their memory, we continue the war against the destructive forces of nature.”
Shocking footage shows the moment the fire plane cut down a tree before crashing and exploding.
The crash occurred around 12:40 GMT (2:40 p.m. local time).
According to Greek officials, the plane crashed into a ravine on the heights of Karystos, where a fire broke out on Sunday.
The clip showed the plane fighting fires before disappearing down a ravine. A moment later, a fireball was seen.
The plane was alongside at least three other planes and around a hundred firefighters battling the blaze in Euboea.
State broadcaster ERT released video of the plane crashing and disappearing behind a cloud of flames and black smoke.
The plane appeared to have struck a tree just after throwing water at the wildfire, causing it to suddenly plummet to the right and land dangerously close to the ground.
As the aircraft banked into the air for another overflight, it rapidly lost altitude and failed to make it over the hill, instead crashing into the slope.
Two helicopters flew to the site to conduct a search and rescue operation, the Air Force said.
It said the prospects weren’t good for the airmen as the plane didn’t have an ejection system.
The accident came as Greece battled wildfires on three major fronts, including on the tourist islands of Rhodes and Corfu, with many regions of the country classified as extremely vulnerable to dangerous wildfires made worse by high winds.
Thousands have been forced to leave their homes, hotels and resorts to flee with food. Some residents of the island of Rhodes had to walk to safety for 12 hours in the heat of up to 40 degrees.
Hundreds of firefighters, with the support of forces from Turkey and Slovakia, have been battling fires that have raged on the island since Wednesday and broke out again in hot, windy weather.
More emergency flights should bring vacationers home today.
Mitsotakis said Tuesday the next few days would be difficult and conditions might improve after Thursday.
“We all stand guard,” he said. “Given the situation the entire planet is facing, especially the Mediterranean Sea, which is a hotspot of climate change, there is no magic defense mechanism, if there was one we would have implemented it.”
Man-made climate change has played an “absolutely overwhelming” role in the extreme heatwaves that swept across North America, southern Europe and China this month, scientists said on Tuesday.
In Greece, a public prosecutor on Rhodes has launched an investigation into the causes of the fires and the readiness and response of the authorities, the state broadcaster ERT said. About 10 percent of the island’s land area was said to have burned down.
The plane appeared to have struck a tree just after throwing water at the wildfire, causing it to suddenly plummet to the right and land dangerously close to the ground
As the aircraft banked into the air for another overflight, it rapidly lost altitude and failed to make it over the hill, instead crashing into the slope
Seconds after it disappeared from camera view, an explosion could be seen erupting from behind the hill, sending thick black smoke billowing into the sky
According to the Air Force, two helicopters rushed to the scene of the accident to conduct a search and rescue operation. No information was given about the fate of the pilots. Pictured: Thick black smoke billows from where the plane crashed today
Large parts of southern Europe are experiencing one of the longest, driest and hottest summers on record, which scientists say is a result of human-caused climate change.
Sicily’s Palermo Airport was closed today due to fires as the Italian island experienced a temperature of 47ºC.
Fires have also been reported in Croatia, France, mainland Italy, Spain, Turkey and Russia.
Lefteris Laoudikos, whose family owns a small hotel in the seaside resort of Kiotari in Greece, one of the epicenters of the weekend’s fire, said his 200 guests – mostly from Germany, Britain and Poland – were evacuated in rental cars.
He said his father, cousin and two others tried to put out the flames with a nearby tank of water.
“When I saw the wind on Saturday and realized there were no planes, I told everyone we’re going to burn today,” he said.
“My father saved the hotel. I called him and he didn’t want to leave. He told me: “If I leave, there will be no more hotels.”
John Hatzis, who owns three unaffected hotels in northern Rhodes, said the island needs to welcome tourists again.
“After the superhuman efforts to contain the fire, we now need superhuman efforts to restart tourism,” he said.
One of the largest islands in Greece, Rhodes is among the most popular summer destinations, attracting around 1.5 million foreign tourists during the summer months.
Some 20,000 people were evacuated from their homes and hotels in Rhodes over the weekend as the inferno spread and reached coastal towns in the south-east of the Emerald Isle after charring land, killing animals and damaging buildings.
After a fire in the coastal town of Mati, east of Athens, killed 104 people in 2018, Greece took a more proactive approach to evacuation. But critics say it hasn’t improved its ability to put out fires, which are common in summer despite being more intense in this year’s heatwave.
The Mayor of Rhodes said on Facebook the island is facing an unprecedented ordeal.
A plane dumps water over a forest fire in the village of Vati on the Aegean island of Rhodes, southeast Greece, Tuesday July 25
A Canadair plane dumps water over a forest fire in the village of Vati on the Aegean island of Rhodes, southeast Greece, Tuesday July 25
A military helicopter is on duty as a forest bursts into flames in the mountains near the village of Vati on the Aegean island of Rhodes, southeast Greece, on Tuesday July 25
Locals watch the wildfires near the village of Vati, north of the coastal town of Gennadi in the southern part of the Greek island of Rhodes, on July 2
Fires also broke out on the island of Corfu.
Greece has seen very high temperatures in recent weeks, which are expected to rise to over 44C in some areas by Wednesday.
More than 2,000 holidaymakers returned home by plane on Monday, and tour operators canceled upcoming trips. TUI has suspended flights to Rhodes until Friday. There were 39,000 customers in Rhodes on Sunday evening.
Tourism accounts for 18 percent of Greek economic output and one in five jobs. In Rhodes and many other Greek islands, the dependence on tourism is even greater.