- A woman is said to have suffered fractured ribs after being hit by the huge wave.
Tourists in Mykonos were in for a nasty surprise when the wake of a speeding passenger ferry caused a huge wave to wash over the beach they were on, knocking some people off their feet.
Two people were reported injured when the huge wave broke through the calm waters and crashed onto the shore, and one woman is said to have suffered fractured ribs.
An angry beachgoer filmed the moment the ship’s wake hit the beach, and in the dramatic footage bathers can be seen running out of the sea and heard screaming.
The water then covers the entire beach and shocked tourists are seen rushing to collect their belongings before they are swept away by the powerful waves.
The ship responsible docked at the port of Rafina on the Greek mainland, where the captain was arrested. local media reports.
Bathers were seen struggling to get out of the sea as the wave approached out of nowhere.
You can see a wall of water forming and then collapsing on a woman still in the sea.
Water crashed onto the beach before covering the sand, knocking some people off their feet.
Two young men are seen running to help a woman who was caught in the giant wave
Bathers are seen running to escape the wave while others were caught in the shocking surge of water.
The incident occurred around midday on Saturday at the popular Agios Stefanos beach, next to Tourlos, the new port of Mykonos.
Sun loungers and people’s belongings were swept away, while reactive bathers were seen jumping and running towards a nearby wall to escape the wave.
Two teenagers and a much younger boy are seen walking out of the sea as they watch the wave approach.
Meanwhile, a woman who remained in the ocean can be seen receiving the full force of the wave, which crashes against her head and knocks her to the ground.
The two boys rush back to check on her and try to help her out of the sea.
Takis Papadakos, who filmed the rising water and shared video of the incident on Facebook, said the woman in the video “was hospitalized with two broken ribs.”
He criticised the ferry operator, saying the captain “went as close and as fast as ever” as they tried to stick to their schedule.
Shocked tourists were seen rushing to collect their belongings before they were swept away by the water.
The coast guard said sun loungers and people’s belongings were scattered by the wave.
Children and their parents are seen running away from the huge wave, while other shocked bathers look on.
A huge cruise ship can be seen in the background of the video, but beachgoers blamed the passenger ferry’s excessive speed.
Although a large cruise ship can be seen in the background of the video, beachgoers and the coast guard blamed the chaos on a smaller vessel, which is not seen in the footage.
The boat apparently belonged to Fast Ferries Andros, which transports tourists and locals between the mainland, Mykonos and several other islands.
Authorities arrested the captain for violating regulations related to reckless operation near other vessels and causing injuries through negligence, news site Protothem reports.
The Mykonos Port Authority has reportedly launched an investigation.