Survivor recounts Cape Greco sea tragedy that killed businessman
Costas Konstantinou described the rough-sea ordeal at Cape Greco in which businessman Dimis Mavropoulos died last Saturday.
Cape Greco, Cyprus. Survivor Costas Konstantinou has recounted the battle against rough seas last Saturday that resulted in the death of businessman Dimis Mavropoulos.
Speaking on the programme “Enimerosi Tora,” Konstantinou, visibly moved, described Mavropoulos as a brotherly friend and said the group had endured an extremely difficult experience.
Annual holidays interrupted by severe weather
Konstantinou said the group considered itself a family and returned to the area every year for holidays. He said he did not know whether he would have the psychological strength to get on a boat again.
He said the group knew that each year there could be a day with difficult conditions and had previously chosen to remain rather than leave, but nobody expected weather conditions as severe as those encountered last Saturday.
Boats struck by waves and rocks
Konstantinou said survival that day had nothing to do with being a good captain and that their actions at the time came down to chance.
He said he tried to leave using a single propeller, but realised he had struck rocks below the surface and could not get away. He described himself as lucky despite his misfortune.
Konstantinou said he watched a boat belonging to Mavropoulos’s friend, Petsas, being smashed to pieces. He then saw Mavropoulos approaching him after attempting to leave.
He said he saw Mavropoulos sitting near the anchor, while what he believed was Mavropoulos’s daughter was at the helm. Mavropoulos reached Konstantinou, but the boat turned side-on and a wave threw him onto the rocks.
Helicopter rescue
Konstantinou said a helicopter arrived afterwards. He allowed his crewman to be lifted first before he was winched aboard.
He said he was not concerned about the boat, but about the lives of those involved, as they did not know whether they would survive. He said he realised he would live when the helicopter picked him up.
Konstantinou said they waited briefly to see who would be lifted next. Mavropoulos’s daughter was then brought up injured and frightened.
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