I'm desperatly looking for information about fire in Hanioti. My brother is trapped on the beach there. For now we can comunicate by mobile phone and are in desperate need of any info concearning the fire.
He says that fire is lighter on one side of the beach, so they are presently there, but have no information other than what they can see.

So far all I was able to do is start a forum thread on [www.topix.net] but for now all information is from people who have relatives in the area.

Please, I'm looking for anyone who can tell more about it so I can translate it to him, please

hi.
i planned to visit pefkohori in friday 25.08. is this fire is serious ?plz answer me...

gorcha, the ppl are dying and u r asking us is that serious?
why dont u go to kill yourself somewhere? stfu pls and try to be usefull

i m really sorry about that chris,i try to find whats happen in halkidiki bcos i have many friends in that area, and i cant contact anybody by mob. phone. do you know how is situation there???

[www.topix.net]
there is not much information about that online or at TV..

Hi my parents are in Halkidiki and I have spoken to them a couple of mins ago, all hotel have been evacuated and everyone is on the beach. The flames are very high and can be seen, they do tell me that although the everyone is on the beach, no one is panicking just yet. I know it's hard but please try not to worry, we are all in the same boat.

I have just heard at the local TV news (studio that people are safe and that firefighters are controlling the fire...

i was there a few weeks ago and i just cant get it in my mind !!! my mom said that the hooolle house is burned , all documents,all papers everything is gone
i was almost in my car driving to greece damned!dsafgsdfhgdh

I have just heard at the local TV news ("studio B" ) - (stupid smiley in previous post!!!!) that people are safe and that firefighters are controlling the fire...

[news.ert.gr]

i just talked with mom again, she is better now, the village is in smoke, the half is burnt , but the rest is only in smoke , the wind make the breathing hard, but its okey on the beach, they are all on the beach, trying to come down...
P.S. sorry for my english..ngdksbghoibho[i

Other TV ( B-92 ) station talked to our consulate officials in Thesaloniki - all people are safe and that is the most important thing right now!!!

yeah,seems like its going better right now... ahhhh thanks God!

thanks for your news!
my mum is somewhere on the beach in hanioti and i can't reach her on the mobile.
On our austrian TV they told that there are more than 1000 people on the beach, some are injured from the smoke and one is dead (jumped into the sea)
not only hanioti is burning, also Kryopigi, Pefkochori und Polychrono.

Have just spoken to our Greek frineds in Hanioti. There are people on the beach however the fire is under control and this area has largely been unaffected. The fire i am told has spred from the pine hills across the road towards the villages.

hi dave

I am concerned as we have friends that run Daphne hotel and also friends in the main square. Thereis news that hotel have been burnt down, do you any more?.

Hi Lin

We too know people in the Daphne and are trying to make contact, though we are unable to get through at present. It is my understanding the village itself is unaffected so your friends in the main square should be ok.

Thanks Dave

We are due to go to Daphne in 2 weeks which isnt important in this situation, i worried Daphnes been affected as its in the hills

The BBC's Malcolm Brabant in Athens says the temperature on Monday was about 42C (107F) and the flames were fanned by a seasonal northern wind called the Meltemi.

Three fingers of land jut out from the Halkidiki peninsula, with the westernmost, Kassandra, affected by the fire.



Ms Leaney told the BBC she had been in her apartment with others when she spotted the flames in the hills.

The rooms "suddenly filled with smoke" and they fled to the beach "with only the belongings we had on us", along with other tourists and local residents.

She said people were walking along the beach shouting the names of family members.

Homes, hotels and campsites have been evacuated. No injuries have been reported.

A local resident, Dimitri Lianais, told the BBC it was "very very windy. A few thousand actually have been on the beach and then the wind changed and they fled to different directions".

He said his home was among those damaged.

'Dodging ash'

The villages of Hanioti and Pefkohori are among the resorts on the Halkidiki peninsula which have been affected.

In Pefkohori, the beach is said to be packed with thousands of people, many preparing to sleep out on sunbeds.

Craig Shakespeare, who is in Hanioti with his girlfriend Lyndsey Jones, spotted the flames on hills he estimated were several miles (km) away from his hotel balcony.


Holidaymaker Lyndsey Jones sent this picture from Hanioti

"I hoped the fire was contained, but literally within five minutes trees 300 yards (275m) from us were on fire," he told the BBC.

"The wind was blowing, and the flames were going everywhere." He said he was "dodging hot ash" as he fled to the nearby beach.

Mr Shakespeare said hundreds of tourists, the majority Greek, were gathered on the beach.

He said he had been told his hotel was on fire, along with some other buildings in Hanioti, but that he was now informed that the fire was contained to the main road.

Some 2,000 British tourists are estimated to be among the holidaymakers in the region.

The UK Foreign Office has set up a phone number for worried relatives: 020 7008 1500.



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Have you been affected by the fire? Are you in the area? Send us your comments and experiences using the form below.
You can send your pictures and video to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 07725 100 100.

has anyone heard about angelo, i have been trying to contact gary.
if anyone hears anything let me know