Darlington tourists praise the kindness of locals during Rhodes wildfire evacuation

A Darlington family caught up in the wildfires in Rhodes are praising the kindness and generosity of local volunteers who took them to safety on the Greek island.

Amy Houghton-Moody was holidaying with her wife and two young children when the blazes became so dangerous that they were forced to evacuate from their hotel.

She's described terrifying chaos as the events unfolded: "We were by the pool and there was just plumes of smokes everywhere. In the evening it got considerably worse and there was ash falling on our clothes, on to our food and in our drinks.

"As the night got darker the sky just lit up bright orange."

"We got an emergency alert to our phones from the Greek Authorities saying that the area needed to be evacuated, so we were told to gather our essential things together and go to the car park.

"It was absolute pandemonium and I had a 9 month old baby with me. Our 5-year-old son was also absolutely distraught and he was crying his eyes out. People were jumping on the back of boats to try and leave. It was unorganised absolute chaos"

Amy and her family were driven to safety by bus, where they were then helped by locals who went above and beyond to make them feel safe.

"Once we got on the bus we didn't know where we were going and we stopped four times at places like schools and stadiums; but they were completely full. After two hours of travelling on the coach and being turned away, we eventually pulled up at another school and there was a humongous queue. A young lad who was volunteering noticed I had a baby and took us to the front.

"We got into the school and the tables and chairs had all been pushed to the sides of the room. We laid out our towels to sleep on, but within 15 minutes the volunteers brought us sleeping bags and water. We were in a room with 15 other people so it wasn't too crowded.

"At 4am they came round with a teddy for the children. They honestly couldn't have done enough."

In the morning, the evacuees were presented with a huge breakfast supplied by local people and businesses. Amy, her wife and children were then approached by a family who wanted to help.

"They were so hospitable. They took us back to their home where we had a shower, they had air con, they fed us, they gave toys and sweets to the boys. They went above and beyond - they were so kind.

"When the road re-opened they took us back to our hotel which was over an hour away. By that point we still hadn't heard anything from Jet2 or any of the tour operators, so if it wasn't for the Greek locals and volunteers -we would still be in that school."