coming da s. . ~ i., ., receive from rhodes over the coming da s. . ~ ., ., receive from rhodes overters in sain's days. thank you for that. voters in spain's general — days. thank you for that. voters in spain's general election _ days. thank you for that. voters in spain's general election have - days. thank you for that. voters in spain's general election have just. spain's general election have just about an hour left to cast their votes. it could see the far right winning a place in government, for the first time since democracy was restored, after the death of general franco almost 50 years ago. voters face a choice between a centre—left government led by prime minister, pedro sanchez, here casting his vote, and the centre—right popular party which may go into coalition with the hard—right vox party. with an hour to go before the polls close, the interior ministry in spain said the turnout stood at 53%. that's a decline of about 5% compared to the previous election. sergi forcada has the latest. polling stations will be closing in the next hour or so here in spain, with the exc

the fire in rhodes is what we call a blow—up fire.ather conditions were highly conducive to extreme fire behaviour we witnessed. we even observed the formation of a small fire. in terms of our ability to predict the behaviour, the answer to your question is yes, we have such tools available will stop the national 0bservatory tools available will stop the national observatory of athens has modelling systems that are able to simulate this exact extreme fire behaviour which was observed when you have fires burning intensively and coupling with the atmosphere generating all this erratic behaviour that is very dangerous for people and firefighters operating in the field. ., ., ., ., ,., the field. doctor theodore, do you think it is going — the field. doctor theodore, do you think it is going to _ the field. doctor theodore, do you think it is going to be _ the field. doctor theodore, do you think it is going to be more - think it is going to be more challenging to contain this fire now? there are clearly a lot of resources deployed on the

well, lewis, rhodes is a --oular saying? well, lewis, rhodes is a popular destination _ saying?is, rhodes is a popular destination for _ saying? well, lewis, rhodes is a popular destination for british . popular destination for british tourists and many of them have been posting online to say they are not getting enough support from their tour operators in the wake of these intensifying fires so we spoke to some of the big ones. let's start with ba. british airways say the team has been in contact with all their customers and ensuring that they are safe and helping to organise hotels and flights. the company went on to say that any customers who need to come home can change their flights free of charge. also if you are planning to go there from the uk in the next week, you can also change to later dates free of charge. the next company we spoke to was tui. they said only a small number of hotels were impacted and that as a precaution, affected customers were moved. the statement went on to say that flights continue to operate and customers will be told should their holidays be a

there must be several hundred people at rhodes airport.here is very limited seating, so most of them are just squatting, or even trying to sleep on the floor. some of the people here told us they've been here since the early hours of the morning, waiting for a handful of flights back to britain tonight. although actually, i have just met a woman who sat very, very tearfully, telling me that she hasn't got a flight home until wednesday, but she doesn't want to go to an evacuation centre, doesn't want to try another hotel — and they're very booked up — because she is worried that the fires will simply spread further. the greek minister for tourism is here at the airport. we had a very brief word with her earlier. she told us that 19,000 people, locals and tourists, have been successfully moved out of danger, out of those fire zones. she said there'd been no injuries during the course of those operations. she also told us that the authorities are setting up a help desk, here at the airport, for any british citizen who has lost, misplaced thei

to rhodes.the prime minister rishi sunak, says holidaymakers are being assisted . being assisted. >> my paramount priority is the safety of british nationals and that's why the deputy prime minister chaired a cobra meeting yesterday . yesterday. >> he's been monitoring the situation closely and we've been in touch with local authorities on the ground there and the foreign office have sent a rapid deployment on the ground to deployment team on the ground to assist people. think most assist people. i think the most important remain important thing is people remain in their tour in touch with their tour operators . there are lots of operators. there are lots of flights going back and forth to be to people home and be able to bring people home and if are in with if people are in touch with their operators, they'll their tour operators, they'll get that they need. >> michael gove has announced plans to create more homes in inner relaxing inner cities by relaxing planning and red planning rules and cu

two flights going to rhodes today.ated its guidance saying it is cancelling all flights until sunday the 30th of july. it was sending, it is sending five flights today but they are sending them empty so they can pick up sending them empty so they can pick up passengers from greece and bring them back to the uk. tui has said it has cancelled its flights until tuesday. it says it has 40,000 customers on the island of rhodes at the moment, a huge number. it says about 7000 of those are affected and its customers are staying in alternative hotels and business conference centres. easyjet is saying it is continuing its flights at the moment but is monitoring the situation carefully. it says it has cancelled all its package holidays until the end of tuesday. thomas cook has come back to us today and it says it is cancelling holidays to the affected areas between now and the affected areas between now and the 31st and those customers can expect to get a full refund or an alternative holiday. those travelling to other parts of

rhodes: he spent the night with her.obably were lovers again that night. (engine starts) bird: this was reported back to colonel boris pash, who was head of army intelligence for all the west coast. and pash was convinced that this was a serious breach of security and that perhaps oppenheimer was conveying nuclear secrets and atomic secrets to the communist party through tatlock sadly, tragically, she died just a few months later, in the spring of 1944. under mysterious circumstances, her father found her naked with her head plunged in a bathtub with her body slumped over the edge of the bathtub. which is a very odd way to commit suicide. there's some speculation that perhaps she was murdered. oppenheimer was horrified and devastated by the news. the security officer who informed him said that he wept openly, that he was absolutely bereft and actually confided that there was nobody that he could speak to about it so you sense, uh, the loneliness of his grief. ♪ tourists tourists that turn into scientists. tourists taking

what a very good afternoon to you in rhodes. what's the latest? what the fire briuade rhodes.re brigade said this _ rhodes. what's the latest? what the fire brigade said this morning - rhodes. what's the latest? what the fire brigade said this morning is - fire brigade said this morning is that across greece there is still around 100 active fires, and around 50 of those broke out overnight. fire crews are still working very, very hard to hear on the island of rhodes, and in the peloponnese to try and control both the new fires and to prevent flare—ups of the old fires, because a lot of the ground where some of the old fires took place is still extremely hot, smouldering, embers on the ground. you can imagine, it is a very windy day today. just a little spark and fly and set off a new fire in dry undergrowth or the use or something like that, so this is something the fire brigade is working very hard to try and prevent. there a sense of cautious relief that the situation is not as bad as it was a few days ago, but everybody remaining on a state of high alert. just ago, but ever

and what's happening here in rhodes- were located in rhodes.rhodes and - were located in rhodes. and what's| happening here in rhodes and other parts of greece is also happening in other countries around the mediterranean. in sicily, this fire forced the airport at the capital palermo to close today. and this at the peak of the island's tourist season. in north africa, wild fires are raging. 3a people, including soldiers, have lost their lives. in turkey, water bombers are being used to help protect tourist areas in the south of the country. the key question now for the authorities in the region is how long this period of deadly fires will last. richard galpin, bbc news. our correspondent azadeh moshiri in rhodes sent us this report from the south east of the island — where firefighters have been tackling the latest blazes. i'm between gennadi and vati in southern rhodes. that's a wildfire which is spreading. the fire service has said that that is the biggest concern they have right now — this area here. now, this is localised in southern rhode

our reporter joins us from rhodes.m there. >> you can see buses are coming, because tourists are trying to make it home kate i just spent the last few hours inside the airport speaking to holiday goers there, and they are simply furious. they feel travel airlines may say they are thinking of their healthnd well-being, but they are finding it really difficult to speak to them. one family i spoke to, a family that had to walk six miles in the beach in flip-flops saturday evening, a family that slept on sun beds at another hotel as they tried to make their way back to the airport, say their airline company, easyjet has been nowhere to be found. there are no representatives there. we are hearing that from a lot of easyjet customers. of course, easyjet is saying services available to them. as far as these customers, they say are -- they say they are traumatized. one lady i spoke to said she used to work at a travel company and she is disgusted -- those are her words -- because after the traumaticffect -- events she went thr

azadeh moshiri there at the airport in rhodes.aymakers in those areas hit by wildfires in greece. well, theo leggett has been looking at the details of the return flights being planned by travel companies and also at what your rights are if you've already booked a holiday but are now thinking of cancelling. thanks, clive. as the fires still rage on rhodes and now corfu as well, british holiday—makers have been returning home. passengers who landed at birmingham airport this morning were clearly relieved to be back. you think, gosh, we have been put through this situation, you empathise with people who have had it worse and have literally had to be rescued by boats. because the flames were getting to them. said to the kids, flames were getting to them. said to the kids. get — flames were getting to them. said to the kids, get anything, _ flames were getting to them. said to the kids, get anything, flannel, - the kids, get anything, flannel, 'ust the kids, get anything, flannel, just get— the kids, get anything, flannel, just get on

thousands of people on the greek island of rhodes are forced to flee their homes and hotels — as wildfires continue to spread. polls have opened in spain, where prime minister pedro sanchez and his main rival alberto nunez have cast their votes in the capital madrid. lam i am live at up polling station in madrid. spaniards are deciding whether to give pedro sanchez for more years in office. and it's day 4 of the women's world cup, where france and jamaica are going head—to—head in the last of today's group matches. firefighters on the greek island of rhodes are struggling to contain a wildfire that's prompted the evacuation of thousands of people. locals and tourists alike have been evacuated from homes and hotels on the island. three hotels have reportedly burnt down, and many others are in the danger zone. private boats have joined the coastguard — picking people up from beaches on the east of the island. the fires have been burning for five days now. the country's deputy fire chief says the blazes in rhodes are the most difficult greece is f

it sounds quite dramatic in rhodes.t have exacerbated these fires in the last 2a hours or so? unfortunately, we can't hear from last 2a hours or so? unfortunately, we can't hearfrom him. we are trying to see if that deal. what is really spotting on the was fires right now? why have they become so dramatic in the past 2a or 48 hours? dramatic in the past 24 or 48 hours? this is basically accounted for by the weather, a combination of the relative humidity and feel most are on ground level and high temperatures and winds and these are all expected to get worse, the winds. with shifting winds you have that extreme sporting and extreme fire behaviour with the mac which makes it very difficult for firefighters on the ground to control and was forecast for more wind to come in the next hours this will only become more challenging. can you cast ahead into the future, how do you think these fires will evolve? it how do you think these fires will evolve? . , , , ., , evolve? it really depends on very local factors. _ evolve? it

indeed, rhodes town is unaffected. the most _ indeed, rhodes town is unaffected. as thomas cook says it took people out on holiday to rhodes yesterday _ took people out on holiday to rhodes yesterday and is taking more today and the _ yesterday and is taking more today and the majority of its customers, even _ and the majority of its customers, even though they have the option to cancel— even though they have the option to cancel over— even though they have the option to cancel over the next few days, most of them _ cancel over the next few days, most of them are — cancel over the next few days, most of them are saying they are not in the affected area and are happy to id the affected area and are happy to go ahead — the affected area and are happy to go ahead. scheduled flights going out today on easyjet, british airways _ out today on easyjet, british airways from london gatwick, so taking _ airways from london gatwick, so taking more people out to a situation _ taking more people out to a situation which, as you've been showing — situation which, as you've been

jenny held live in rhodes.eople's party are just ahead of the governing socialist party. we think they are just ahead. things are close. these are the headquarters there at the centre right party. people are pouring over the numbers trying to work out the different permutations here, because what we know our the two major parties don't have enough seats individually to form a government. so coalition talks will now get under way. these are the life pictures we have been flicking back and forth between of the two major parties and their their parties effectively, but how much do they have to celebrate, well, it is not quite clear yet, but we don't have long to wait. we can speak now to maria ramirez, managing editor of the spanish newspaper el diario. thank you for coming on the programme. the votes are almost all counted. have you got the latest, where we are at the moment? yes. counted. have you got the latest, where we are at the moment? yes, we are at 9696 of — where we are at the moment? yes, we are at 9696

but they warned that they were putting all their resources into rhodes. afternoon and the evening, the imagesjust kept trickling in of the smoke covering the island, people being evacuated in their hundreds, hotels burning down, reportedly, as you mentioned. and the problem is, is that fire that's been burning for days is proving to be very difficult to respond to. the fire service told me that that's because of the extreme humidity, the winds, the temperatures. it makes all of this so difficult, which is why the international support that's been coming in from european countries has been so needed. you've been chatting to people there. what are people been saying about this? earlier this week and yesterday, we've travelled through areas that have been hit by the wildfires. so we were talking to people who've actually lost their homes. we'd look at them and there were homes that literally were reduced to rubble, roofs that used to protect them from the weather succumb to the fires. we met one man who said he doesn't even have a bed to sleep on any more an

itruffle our correspondent has been giving us the latest from rhodes.— the latest from rhodes.st from rhodes. wee been told around 50 _ the latest from rhodes. wee been told around 50 new _ the latest from rhodes. wee been told around 50 new fires _ the latest from rhodes. wee been told around 50 new fires have - the latest from rhodes. wee been i told around 50 new fires have broken out, and although the situation is improving in general, firefighters, quite a large crew of firefighters is still hard at work here on rhodes and also on corfu and in the peloponnese tackling these blazes. some of them are new and some of them flare—ups of old fires because them flare—ups of old fires because the ground is still smouldering in many places in these forest areas and it doesn't take much for a spark to fly in these very windy conditions we have been seeing over the last few days and set off new blazes. so people here still very much on high alert, but also beginning to count the cost of the fires that have ravaged parts of this island. we have been told that 50,000 olive trees were d

andrea is a british tourist from cheshire who is on holiday on rhodes.o her about the situation she found herself in. we were running down the beach, people had suitcases, we had towels wrapped around our head because there was ash falling on us, and then a boat arrived, which we think was from the authorities, and they were only taking women and children. a friend that i was with was having severe breathing difficulties and was in shock so i was trying to get her on the boat for them to take her. and then that was a little bit tricky and while they were dragging her up i did actually crawl under her legs, which i did more for her than anything because she actually needed me to be with her. so, we were really lucky, we got off the beach, but there were hundreds and literally thousands of people still on the beach, and everybody was screaming, they were fighting, it was... it was like armageddon. they were in the sea, there was nowhere for them to go. and we could see that the fire was chasing us down, there was nobody there, there was no—one telling us w

if you are due to travel to rhodes, - planning to travel to rhodes?derstand hsati w with your travel provider to understand hastihnappeing with with your travel provider to understand what is happening with your holiday, with your flight. some companies have cancelled holidays until the end of the week, end of july, and that varies from company to company so it is important that you check. some airlines are still operating flights. it might be if you are booked on a flight, your holiday might be able to go ahead. also worth bearing in mind that rhodes is a large island and while a large number have been evacuated from an area, other parts are fully functioning and people are able to travel and enjoy a holiday there. a lot of people are doing that at the moment. ~ . , . ., , ., ~ moment. what difference does it make if ou moment. what difference does it make if you haven't — moment. what difference does it make if you haven't booked _ moment. what difference does it make if you haven't booked a _ moment. what difference does it make if you haven't book

, rhodes in particular.jess bailey and her daughter travelled daughter anna. they'd travelled to rhodes the weekend and to rhodes at the weekend and they believe that their travel company, did not inform company, tui, did not inform them sufficiently of the situation on the ground. they ended in evacuation centre ended up in an evacuation centre basically with local people supplying food and water. well, tui have come back to us with the following statement on it. >> our teams in rhodes des tui have been working tirelessly to support customers impacted by the wildfires in southeastern parts of the island. five repatriation flights have brought hundreds of customers home and we're working hard to get everyone back. as soon as we can. we appreciate how distressing and difficult it has been for those who have been evacuated . we ask that they evacuated. we ask that they continue to follow the advice of the local authorities and keep in touch with our reps . we have in touch with our reps. we have now all custom

our reporter azadeh moshiri is on rhodes and sent this update.e the village of masari and you can see behind me there's some charred trees. these were olive trees. there are embers to the right of me that are burning, as well. this was a firebreak that was created to protect the village nearby. that's because these fires are spreading now across the island of rhodes. i got a call from the fire service who told me that there is still this big wildfire across rhodes and that they thought perhaps they might have it under control, it seemed better this morning, but then afterwards there was a resurgence between the towns of gennady and vati in the south because two rivers dried up and they were extremely strong winds. essentially, he was saying we are still hunting fires every day and that rhodes is still the biggest problem they're facing right now. yeah, temperatures expected to soar again today across the country. warnings of more fires and more difficulty trying to tackle them as resources are now so stretched, aren't they, azadeh? absolutely, an

ask any rhode islander, and they will tell you that bill was an institution of rhode island's sports and journalism whose column was read by thousands across the state. it was a tradition. a must-read. and families across rhode island including mine started their saturday by reading his column for what it's worth. which included his latest, not only on sports, but also pop culture, politics, movies, and more. he was a columnist at the journal for almost 40 years, a n"new york times" best-selling author, and hall of fame brown university basketball player. who still played pickup games well into his 60's and was known for his jump shot which earned him the nickname shooter. bill was one of the best sports writers in rhode island history, who mentored an entire generation of aspiring writers and athletes. there will never be another like him. may he rest in peace. i rise today to celebrate the achievements of rhode island's special olympic athlete brian johnson of east greenwich. he made rhode island proud by bringing home the gold for bochl olympics in berlin last month. he and his te

george is rhodes. hello!y, take i stock. george is rhodes. hello! i know i am told you a british of greek— know i am told you a british of greek origin, you have a holiday home _ greek origin, you have a holiday home there, you are helping out. what _ home there, you are helping out. what are — home there, you are helping out. what are you doing? like everyone else i am doing _ what are you doing? like everyone else i am doing my— what are you doing? like everyone else i am doing my best. _ what are you doing? like everyone else i am doing my best. we i what are you doing? like everyone else i am doing my best. we have | what are you doing? like everyone| else i am doing my best. we have a number_ else i am doing my best. we have a number of— else i am doing my best. we have a number of people here, we have filled _ number of people here, we have filled every corner of the house and they are _ filled every corner of the house and they are having a good time trying to take _ they are having a good time trying

tourists have fled their resorts as fires engulfed parts of rhodes.e were told by the police that we had to evacuate the building because the, erm, the air was just unbreathable. it had turned bright orange and black above our heads from the hotel. so we were evacuating immediately. so we're one of the very lucky ones. we managed to get on the authority boat and this is what we're leaving behind. that's the beach. thousands were evacuated by land and by sea as buildings were consumed by flames in the south. some hotels burnt down altogether. and yet a number of tourists decided to shelter in place. we had a national alert saying| the area was being evacuated, but we were being told at that time that our hotel wasn't. _ we locked ourselves up in our room. we had people sort of running past on the road, hundreds of people i filing down to the beach, - asking for water, wet towels. the fire service has told the bbc it apologises for what it called "a mess", but insisted they are trying their best in difficult conditions. rhodes�* abundance of trees makes

she's in rhodes where she's been holidaying.he's been holidaying. you for coming on the programme. thank you for coming on the programme. we thank you for coming on the programme-— thank you for coming on the programme. thank you for coming on the rouramme. ., ., , �* , programme. no worries, high. because throu~h programme. no worries, high. because through what — programme. no worries, high. because through what has _ programme. no worries, high. because through what has happened _ programme. no worries, high. because through what has happened to - programme. no worries, high. because through what has happened to you. - programme. no worries, high. because through what has happened to you. it i through what has happened to you. it is all a little bit chaotic, really. last night, you could see there were fires off in the distance, there was ash falling, everything was normal and today was normal up until about lunch time when the sky turned orange. i had gone to the gym and came up to find the reception full of people with suit

now ted, you're in rhodes. do you live in rhodes or are you holiday maker?e of rodos. we are not affected by any fires here, but all the fires are in the centre of the of rodos. so i'm imagining road is looking like a rhomboid . everything will be rhomboid. everything will be right in the centre in the between the mountains . between the mountains. >> okay. okay. and of course some of the pictures you've provided us. if you're listening on radio, please download that app on radio, please download that app have a look or stream us app and have a look or stream us live where you can app and have a look or stream us live that where you can app and have a look or stream us live that gbnews.com. you can app and have a look or stream us live that gbnews.com. gor can app and have a look or stream us live that gbnews.com. go to an app and have a look or stream us live that gbnews.com. go to our see that gbnews.com. go to our website check out the website and check out the pictures now. now ted, what are the people saying? because i've had reports that obviously a lo

rhodes until at least july 25. they rhodes until at leastjuly 25.hts and they will be flights, extra flights, put on to help ring people back to the uk from rhodes. that's happening tomorrow and the next day. we've also heard from tui who have cancelled bears into the 25th, two days�* time, and jet2 have cancelled for at least a week, untiljuly 30. ryanair, though, says flights are still running as normal and we've heard other airlines saying the same, this schedule has not been affected. 0ne flight that was due to take off this afternoon spent several hours on the tarmac, you can see passengers there fanning themselves with the safety instructions, and we were told that a few hours after this flight took off, it actually had to land in italy, not its intended arrival point in london, because the crew had timed out, it's been so long in the tarmac waiting departure in rhodes that then, the crew timed out. so that's the experience of some tourists. 0thers experience of some tourists. others are spending days on end here at the airport, waiting for fl

the best hospitality that you can find in rhodes any time of the year.most attractive tourist destinations, and actually, right now, only a small area of the island was affected, but of course, our concern is always the safety of everyone. so this is why people needed to be evacuated. of course, thank you. i'll just jump in there. i didn't want to interrupt, but as i say, the line is a bit difficult. but it is good enough that i think we can continue. i just want to ask about the airport and flights getting out of there. we are hearing from some people who are waiting a long time at the airport. 0thers waiting on board aeroplanes that aren't taking off for various reasons. what do you know about actually getting enough flights to leave and take people with them? i understand this could be a concern, but the airport never stopped operating. there was never disruption of the flights. flights were coming in and going out, because as i said before, it is only a small area of the whole island that has been affected. so overall, the island is operating as norm

holidaymaker home from rhodes . up to 10,000 from rhodes.st stranded holidaymakers having started to arrive back in the uk already hundreds of british tourists have been stranded. they fled hotels . they've left belongings hotels. they've left belongings behind and they've been sleeping in airports and makeshift shelters and schools in parts of the island. in addition to over 50 scheduled flights. one of those flights has just mentioned will go to manchester. another to leeds, bradford, and a third for birmingham. and there expected to take off later on this evening . train drivers are this evening. train drivers are threatening fresh disruption at the height of the summer holidays with another ban on overtime. members of the aslef union will not work extra hours for a week from saturday, the 5th to the 12th of august. the union claims that none of the train companies employ enough drivers and is warning of serious disruption. it will be the fifth week long ban on overtime since may. the latest one ended on saturday and another one starts on

and we're seeing in seeing what's happening in rhodes issue to rhodes. now.ention around this subject. and very open this subject. and i am very open to reasoned and to having a reasoned and rational debate this rational debate about this because think the time has because i think the time has come for us have that. the come for us to have that. the climate changed cyclically climate has changed cyclically over the millennia. we know that it has changed due to many natural phenomenon radiation from the sun, changes in the structure of the surface of the earth, in the earth, changes in the atmospheric structure, all of those things. what people atmospheric structure, all of thoseeingjs. what people atmospheric structure, all of thoseeingjs. the what people atmospheric structure, all of thoseeingjs. the moment)ple atmospheric structure, all of thoseeingjs. the moment seems are seeing at the moment seems to be exponential rise in to be an exponential rise in climate and that seems to be unked climate and that seems to be linked due to the science is showing to c

rhodes is still the most _ alongside your talking?ng? rhodes is still the most difficult part - alongside your talking? rhodes is still the most difficult part to - still the most difficult part to handle because of the fact that there is so much greenery and so many tall pines and the fact that there is strong dry heat and very strong winds. that is why firefighters say that actually, most of the time, rhodes is always the island they focus on and find so difficult. but it is also very important to mention that loss of life has happened in other parts. evenif life has happened in other parts. even if you are looking at these huge files and images, it is important to remember that it was on the mainland where two people just died. a man who was a farmer trying to protect his sheep and a woman who stayed in her mobile home. of course, it was on another island where two pilots died. when you are looking at the concentration of these fires, there are the areas that are extremely difficult, but it is different parts of greece that are sti

including tourists, are evacuated from the island of rhodes. a mass march in protest against the israeli government's controversialjudicial reforms reaches the parliament injerusalem. russian officials in occupied crimea say a ukrainian drone has attacked an amunition depot. and england take a narrow win against haiti in their opening match at the women's world cup. we'll have all the day's results. hello. in greece, wildfires are burning out of control on the island of rhodes. thousands of people have been evacuated from homes and hotels on the island. three hotels have reportedly burnt down, and many others are in the danger zone. private boats have joined the greek coastguard, picking people up from beaches on the east of the island. the greek army has also been helping get tourists to safety. no injuries have been reported. plumes of smoke can be seen blanketing the island with its many resorts. the fires have been burning for five days. the country's deputy fire chief says the fires in rhodes are the most difficult greece is facing. it com

you got home from rhodes yesterday. give us _ morning. you got home from rhodes yesterday._ morning. you got home from rhodes yesterday. give us the narrative. - yesterday. give us the narrative. yeah, we did. yeah, we were staying just north and saw the plumes of smoke during the day and it looked fine, we don't really panic too much, and then 5000 evacuees arrived at our hotel and at nine o'clock at night we got the emergency alert notice that said we need to get out, so we were lucky, we were able to back anything up, drag everything down to the beach and transferred from one boat to another ball and moved up, relatively unaffected computer some of the people we met on the boats who were literally in the flames, near enough, so very lucky. the flames, near enough, so very luc . , . , the flames, near enough, so very lucky-_ yes. - the flames, near enough, so very lucky-_ yes. my - the flames, near enough, so very lucky._ yes, my wife the flames, near enough, so very i lucky._ yes, my wife is lucky. kids as well? yes, my wife is 27 weeks pregnant _ lucky. kids as well? ye

those are the live pictures from rhodes.is another day of searing and potentially deadly heat for many people across southern europe. wildfires are burning in at least nine countries around the mediterranean. amongst the hardest hit is greece, which we've been watching. plumes can be seen approaching this village on the island of rhodes. the greek armed forces are observing three days of mourning after two pilots died battling the flames. their aircraft crashed on tuesday. this is the italian island of sicily, where fires raged near the ancient sanctuary of tindari — a popular tourist attraction. palermo airport also had to close for several hours. but the worst—affected areas are the islands of rhodes and evia where the fires have been burning for days. the bbc�*s azadeh moshiri is in rhodes. the fire service thinks this could be the most dangerous situation experienced yet. the wind is not... this fire behind me isjust spreading all over the place. there is a big flare—up there. but if you come across with me here and look

greek island of rhodes.officials warn the blaze is still out of control. >> repatriate foreign flights are underway with thousands of people already brought home with more trips scheduled for today and the foreign office has so far not advised against going to rhodes. >> but the prime minister said his priority was the safety of the british people and urged them to get in touch with their operators carol. i can't understand the fuss about the foreign people foreign office. people should just common you just use their common sense, you know, want to don't. know, if you want to or don't. yeah. >> and the thing they're >> and the thing is, they're reading the papers every day. they're seeing these terrible pictures of people why pictures of people fleeing. why would why would you would you go? why would you board plane? you don't to would you go? why would you bo'to plane? you don't to would you go? why would you bo'to told ane? you don't to would you go? why would you bo'to told ore? you don't to would you go?

these are pictures from one village in rhodes where houses have been destroyed.hree hotels there have reportedly burnt down, and many others are in the danger zone. this is the damage at one hotel in the town of kiotari. here you can see cars, buildings and vegetation all burnt out, going right up to the edge of the sea. and some fires are still burning — these pictures have come into us from the turkish ministry of agriculture, taken from one of their planes which is helping to fight the fires. this means people are on the move. many people spent the night in temporary accommodation like this after being evacuated from hotels others have been forced to gather in public buildings like halls and schools. this is tonight where in evacuation orders have been issued, the fire there is taking hold. i've also been speaking with a british holiday—maker stranded at rhodes airport — charliejohnson told me about her current situation. we have just been moved from the departure gate down to arrivals, where we were told we would be able to collect our suitcases, but that is

ifind myself six miles south of the capital, rhodes, in the north of the island.osition is where the wildfires have torn through this area. that is south of the coast on these. that is about ten kilometres away, where the wildfires started off, which weren't controlled through the weekend together. you saw the pictures earlier in the week. we are two hours ahead of the uk, so it is three o'clock in the morning over here. you can probably see by me some tired bodies from hotels from all around the island, they have all come to this place, taking towels and even to my right shoulder there are some people on medical beds. we got the alert on our phone, the emergency alert, atabout 11:30pm our time, then we are on the bus at midnight at the time, and what you could see, is we got on this bus and there was a red glow over the top of the hills, where you could see the fires that these firemen and the army have been trying to battle. you can see the glow and since it was close but with the operation by everyone was able to get everyone away from the areas that are a dang

we start in greece where wildfires have swept across the island of rhodes. airlines and holiday companies are scrambling to bring back those affected, while some flights to the island have been cancelled. up to 10,000 british tourists are there, with many more booked to travel in the coming weeks. and with more record temperatures forecast, there are renewed travel alerts and extreme weather warnings. but the uk government has so far not issued guidance against all travel to the region, meaning insurance companies are unlikely to cover the costs of a cancelled trip. earlier i asked a travel expert whether it's still safe for people to be travelling to the region. yes, it is safe to be travelling to the region, we are only talking about a small part thankfully of rhodes itself that has been affected. however i think it is important for anyone who is planning to travel to the region, to think about the potential consequences and the impact it has on the infrastructure of a small island like rhodes, obviously we are seeing less impact so far on other islands bu

you have been staying there in rhodes. you've been near these fires yourself.hotel. can you take as to what is happening where you are? thank you carl, yes, ifind myself in faliraki, which is six miles south of the capital, rhodes, which is in the north of the island. 25 miles south of our position is where the wildfires have torn through this country. i was staying in lindos, which is a few miiles down the south on the coast, on the east. that is itself about ten kilometres away, where the wildfires started off, which weren't controlled through the week, came together. you saw the pictures earlier in the week. we are two hours ahead of the uk, so it is coming up three o'clock in the morning over here. you can probably see by me some tired bodies — people from hotels from all around the island, who have all come to this place, in faliraki, they're on beds, taking towels and even to my right shoulder there are some people on medical beds as they take some treatment for their bodies, as well. we got the alert on our phone, we got an emergency alert, atabout 11:30

fires have made rhodes a holiday held, flames turning sky is red overnight.tish holidaymakers are among those fleeing for their lives. it literally felt like we were in some sort of apocalypse film because the sky behind the hotel was lit up bright orange and red, the hotel was abandoned, there was just things, you know, sort of people who have been by the stall, the staff have been totally abandoned, suitcases abandon the lobby, on the beach. it abandon the lobby, on the beach. . , �* ., abandon the lobby, on the beach. �* ., , beach. it wasn't enough coaches to move 800 — beach. it wasn't enough coaches to move 800 people _ beach. it wasn't enough coaches to move 800 people but - beach. it wasn't enough coaches to move 800 people but the - beach. it wasn't enough coaches to move 800 people but the fire was coming, the smoke was coming, _ was coming, the smoke was coming, so we all set off on foot — coming, so we all set off on foot i— coming, so we all set off on foot. i walked 12 miles in this heat — foot. i walked 12 miles in this heat yesterday. it took

we begin in greece, where authorities have declared a state of emergency in southern rhodes, one of ateast two greek islands where firefighters are battling wildfires. greek police say 19,000 people have now been evacuated from homes and hotels in rhodes, while new evacutation orders are in place tonight on the island of corfu. three hotels there have reportedly burnt down, and many others are in the danger zone. this is the damage at one hotel in the town of kiotari. and some fires are still burning — these pictures have come into us from the turkish ministry of agriculture, taken from one of their planes, which is helping to fight the blazes. well, many people spent the night in temporary accommodation like this after being evacuated from hotels. others have been forced to gather in public buildings like halls and schools. 0ur correspondent jenny hill is in rhodes. 0ver over 250 firefighters have spent the day desperately trying to bring the fire under control, but tonight they have reported what they describe as large flare—ups on all three fronts of that fire. you can probably see

thousands of people on the greek island of rhodes are forced to flee their homes and hotels — as wildfiresontinue to spread. polls have opened in spain, where prime minister pedro sanchez has cast his vote in the capital madrid. and — it's day 4 of the women's world cup where the netherlands have just beaten portugal 1—0 while france will face jamaica. hello, i'm celia hatton. firefighters on the greek island of rhodes say they expect wildfires to become more intense today, as temperatures rise. thousands of people have been evacuated from homes and hotels on the island. three hotels have reportedly burnt down and many others are in the danger zone. private boats have joined the coastguard picking people up from beaches on the east of the island. the fires have been

and some airlines are expanding to the island of rhodes.hodes is not the only island that has the fire. and another island of korfu. we understand that authorities are sending more forces there as well. at the moment, we don't have any houses burning, just preliminary, precautionary, evacuations for the time being. but they're preparing in case they need to get more people out. this has been an incredibly hot time in greece. it's been the most prolonged heat wave in greece's known history so far. and with temperatures that are likely to remain extremely high for at least the middle of the week. so, as we understand, the country really feels like a tinderbox right now. there are strong winds in most parts of the country which makes conditions extremely difficult, christine. >> elinda, live from athens, thank you. >>> texas governor greg abbott says his state has the sovereign authority to defend its border as it faces a deadline to commit to remove floating barriers on the rio grande. the deadline was set by the u.s. justice department which

rhodes has 1300 species of plants with eight of these being locally endemic. cross to demetres karavellas, director general of the environmental ngo wwf greece. . thank you for coming on the programme. . thank you for coming on the programme-— . thank you for coming on the rouramme. . ~ i. ., ., programme. thank you for having me. we have seen — programme. thank you for having me. we have seen the _ programme. thank you for having me. we have seen the terrible _ programme. thank you for having me. we have seen the terrible pictures - we have seen the terrible pictures of the wild fires, what's the kind of the wild fires, what's the kind of damage that's being done? well. of damage that's being done? well, wild fires in — of damage that's being done? well, wild fires in the _ of damage that's being done? -m wild fires in the mediterranean eco—systems are quite common and the eco—systems are quite common and the eco—systems have become adapted to wild fires. but the reality is these fires are now more frequent and more intense. as you mentioned, on the island of

there are no plans for the uk government to repatriate british holiday—makers from rhodes as rhodes airportll keep you right up to date with events right across europe. in north africa, too, we have been reporting on wildfires in algeria and some pretty wild, wet when weather in northern italy causing havoc there. we will stay right across the developments and bring you the latest if we get them. with a year to go until the olympics, paris is cleaning up the river seine to make it fit for swimmers and divers. the river has been far too dirty for swimming for almost a century. but now there's a new plan to make city swimming one of the major legacies of the games. from paris, hugh schofield sent this report. a year from the paris olympics and here's a bit of a foretaste — a diving competition. you could say they're testing the water. it's more than eight years since there have been competitive events in the river seine. now, thanks to the improved water quality, they're back. it wasn't just that swimming in the old seine was illegal — no—one in their right mind would have taken the risk. and

from the island of rhodes where the fires are said to be out of control. i'm in greece where temperatures are making it difficult for the firefighters to get a handle on wildfires tearing through their country. scientists say the speed and timing of a recent series of temperature related climate records is �*unprecedented'. russian officials in occupied crimea say a ukrainian drone has hit an ammunition depot on the peninsula. and england take a narrow win against haiti in their opening match at the women's world cup — we'll bring you all the day's results. hello, i'm lewis vaughanjones. we begin with breaking news from greece where thousands of people have been evacuated from homes and hotels on the island of rhodes because of fires there. three hotels are reported to have burnt down. private boats have joined the greek coastguard in helping to pick up people from beaches on the east of the island. the fires — said to be out of control — have been burning on the island for five days now. the country's deputy fire chief says the fires there are the most di