Photos of tourists climbing off a tour ship at Balos Beach in Chania and huddling into the sea have emerged and been proliferated on the internet. People are referring to the overcrowded conditions on the beach as unsafe.
Tourists were stumbling, flailing, and diving to disembark from the back of the boat and get into the deep water. For many of those at the beach, the sea water was all the way up to their necks.
Local media reported that this weekend will see a floating platform brought to the beach. It will apparently be made available to visitors starting on Monday. This is in the hopes of putting an end to the overcrowded and dangerous conditions captured in the photos.
People who experienced the situation in Balos spoke out about what it was like. “I want to report the unacceptable situation that prevails in the disembarkation and boarding of the large ship of 800-900 passengers in Balos. People have to walk through neck-deep water to reach the edge of the sea. Elderly people are unable to walk,” a woman who was at the beach told Zarpanews.
She added that “most stayed on the ship out of fear. Only about 40 people got off and everyone came back angry and disappointed.”
Installing the floating platform at Balos Beach
According to the e-Kissamos Facebook page, the decision to install the floating platform was made last month.
“This is stipulated by the decision of the Ministry of Environment published in the Government Gazette on Tuesday,” wrote Stavros Karefyllakis, administrator for the Facebook page. “Essentially, the Ministry of Environment adopts the proposal of the Municipality of Kissamos so that the disembarkation of all passengers takes place on the floating platform (until this year one company used the floating platform, from now on all will use it) until the boaters are placed.”
He added:
“In particular, the ministerial decision stipulates that ‘the approach [is to make] stops…and [stay] by vessels in the sea area near the beach, for tourists to take a sea bath. Making stops…and staying in the maritime area by motorized (inboard and outboard) watercraft is only carried out by mooring to the intended floating boaters.
Until the issue of the Management Plan as well as the regulation of universal accessibility issues, the approach of visitors from the floating means to the beach will be carried out using a floating platform. Until the boats are installed, mooring is allowed outside Poseidonia meadows (priority habitat).’”
Balos Beach is a small sand isthmus, which links Crete’s mainland to the island of Tigani. The southern part of the beach is the shallow lagoon with turquoise waters, and on the north side, there is a blue-water bay.
