Raging wildfires sweeping through Greek resort towns have killed at least 60 people while sending residents and tourists fleeing the smoke-choked towns to the coastline.
The death toll climbed Tuesday after authorities said they found the charred bodies of 26 people believed to be family members huddled together near a beach, the Associated Press reported.
READ MORE: Hugging bodies found near beach as Greece wildfire death toll tops 50
“They had tried to find an escape route but unfortunately these people and their kids didn’t make it in time. Instinctively, seeing the end nearing, they embraced,” Nikos Economopoulos, the head of Greece’s Red Cross, told Skai TV.
WATCH: Athens choked by smoke from deadly wildfires
Reuters reported Greek coastguard vessels and other boats rescued almost 700 people who had managed to get to the shoreline and pulled another 19 survivors and six dead bodies from the sea, the coastguard said.
Greece Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras declared three days of mourning over the “unspeakable tragedy.”
“Today Greece is mourning, and in memory of those who were lost, we are declaring a three-day period of mourning,” Tsipras said. “But we mustn’t let mourning overwhelm us, because these hours are hours of battle, unity, courage and above all solidarity.”
Photos show the charred remains of family members huddled together on a beach, while roads were clogged with burnout vehicles.
WATCH: People evacuate by sea from Greece wildfires
–with files from the Associated Press
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