Crew members of a superyacht have been accused of starting a devastating forest fire on the Greek island of Hydra after allegedly launching fireworks from their vessel last week to entertain their guests, according to reports.
The blaze erupted on Friday night and raged into the following day, with a Greek official saying scenic woodlands were destroyed in the inferno. The 13 crew and passengers of the vessel appeared in the criminal court in Piraeus on Sunday on charges related to the fire in the island’s only pine forest., a lavish 176-foot vessel which charters for around $320,000 a week in the summer months, was chartered by 17 people from, according to local reports.
Hydra, one of Greece’s Saronic Islands located southwest of Athens, is a popular vacation destination for tourists. Earlier this month,Giorgos Koukoudakis, Hydra’s mayor, said the town hall would seek compensation depending on the outcome of the prosecution. “What was destroyed was absolutely beautiful pine forest and on the night in question, because of the winds, fireworks were banned,” he said,