At the end of September, the hurricane hit the extensive Vlycho Bay on the eastern side of the island in the late afternoon, but only now are reports being published from sailors who witnessed the drama. Birgit Best and Richard Gailer, who have been sailing regularly in the Ionian Sea for years, report on the events on the website of the long-distance sailing association Trans Ocean. They anchored in Vlycho Bay to weather - like many other crews - a forecast southerly gale of seven to eight Beaufort. The spot is ideal for this wind direction and has been considered one of the safest anchorages in the area for decades.
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But this time the place became a trap: eyewitnesses report that a tornado swept across the bay, leaving a trail of devastation in its wake with wind speeds of up to 180 kilometres per hour. Yachts were dismasted, stranded and sank. Sails and biminis shredded, dozens of yachts overturned in winter storage in a nearby shipyard. The storm ended tragically for a French water sports enthusiast who was washed off his boat and drowned.
"In the late afternoon of the 20th, a deafeningly roaring storm breaks out within a few seconds on this small "lake" less than 2 kilometres long, pushing our yacht almost flat on the water. Sometimes to the right, sometimes to the left. Within seconds, water shoots out of the washbasins, laptops, crockery and pieces of furniture fly right through our boat. Despite the enormously high freeboard, our running deck is completely flooded due to heeling and waves," reports Richard Gailer on the Trans Ocean page. "
He continues: "The otherwise peaceful Vlychon looks like a tsunami: drifting boats, dinghies, paddles, lifebuoys, branches, a shoe, tattered sails everywhere you look, tattered or completely missing biminis, sprayhoods or cake stands, connected yachts. Some sailors who went overboard on other yachts were thankfully able to save themselves on land under their own power."
Andreas Fritsch
Editor Travel
