Horrifying moment landslide hits Zante beach packed with British tourists: Rocks crash down just feet from beachgoers and create a WHIRLPOOL that flips over three boats
- At least seven people have been injured following a landslide at Navagio beach
- Eyewitness told ANA: 'There was a rumble and a rock fell, followed by a larger rock and then another'
- A Czech woman suffered back injuries and was transferred to hospital, coast official said
- Another six people, including two children, had received treatment for minor injuries, a hospital official in Zakynthos told Reuters
- Beach is on the island of Zante and one of Greece's most popular destinations
This is the horrifying moment a landslide hit the the popular Navagio beach in Greece, injuring at least seven people.
Dramatic footage captures the moment tourists cheated death after rocks came crashing down from a cliff just feet from them on the island of Zakynthos, also known as Zante.
Although fire brigade and coast guard officials said there was no one missing, authorities had air and sea assets in the area and were conducting a search as a precaution, in case people were trapped under the rocks, one official said.
At least seven people have been hurt following a landslide at Navagio beach on the island of Zante, state agency ANA said. The horrifying moment the landslide hit the beach packed with British tourists was captured on video
Tourists are seeing trying the flee the area as the rocks crash down just feet away from beachgoers. The injuries of those hurt are not life-threatening and there are no people missing, fire brigade and coast guard officials said
'So far, we haven't found any trapped people but we will continue searching,' a fire brigade official said.
Beachgoers Paris Jade Thorpe, 26 and Wendy Thorpe, 53, from Odiham, Hampshire said: 'We went to take some pics for my daughters portfolio and took a phone selfie before getting out the main camera.
'We were last in queue to get off the boat before we got off and an almighty crash was heard we saw people running up towards the back of the boat screaming.
'I looked up and saw another smash of rock come away and a giant wave hit the small boats and debris hit people on the beach.
'They were trying to scramble and then a giant wave hit rocked and capsized the boats. I then took phone footage.
'My daughter ran up the back of boat to get me and we thought more rocks were going to fall everyone was screaming and asking the boat crew to move out but they were taking other people off the beach onto our boat.'
One of the Ionian island's main attractions, Navagio, which can only be reached by boat, has a shipwreck on the shore and is surrounded by steep cliffs.
The world-renowned beach of Navagio beach is one of Greece 's most popular travel destinations
Video footage uploaded on the website of Greek newspaper Proto Thema shows bathers running in panic as a large part of a cliff peeled off the rockwall and crashes down
Video footage uploaded on the website of Greek newspaper Proto Thema showed bathers running in panic as a large part of a cliff peeled off the rockwall and tumbled down at a point close to the sandy shore.
A couple of small vessels overturned from the force of the fall that caused high waves, witnesses told authorities.
A Czech woman suffered back injuries and was transferred to hospital, a coast official said.
Another six people, inluding two children, had received treatment for minor injuries, a hospital official in Zakynthos told Reuters.
'There was a rumble and a rock fell, followed by a larger rock and then another. They whipped up a whirlpool that overturned (three) boats,' an eyewitness told ANA news agency.
A Czech woman suffered back injuries and was transferred to hospital, and another six people, inluding two children, had received treatment for minor injuries, a hospital official in Zakynthos told Reuters
Navagio Beach, or Shipwreck Beach, lies on the coast of Zakynthos, in the Ionian Islands of Greece. Hundreds of people were on the beach at the time, including children
Navagio beach, takes its name from the remains of a cargo ship that was wrecked there nearly 40 years ago. The site is also favoured by bungee jumpers and other extreme sports enthusiasts
'There was a rumble and a rock fell, followed by a larger rock and then another. They whipped up a whirlpool that overturned (three) boats,' an eyewitness told the agency
Navagio is one of Greece's most popular beaches, taking its name from the remains of a cargo ship that was wrecked there nearly 40 years ago.
The site is also favoured by bungee jumpers and other extreme sports enthusiasts.
Authorities shut down access to the beach, which lies at the foot of a 200-metre (650-foot) cliff and is accessible only by boat, as a precaution.
No comments: