Greek travel island hit with electricity blackout

The Greek island of Santorini, one of the country's premier travel destinations, was hit with a sweeping power shortage on Tuesday after a fire at the island's main electricity plant, officials said. "The island is without electricity," a source at the Public Power Corporation, Greece's main power provider, told AFP. "There was a fire around midday at the power plant of the island capital of Fira," the source added. The Aegean island's mayor Nikos Zorzos told To Vima radio that electricity generators were expected to arrive on Santorini after midnight. Until then, authorities would rotate power between the island's regions to prevent a general blackout. The incident did not affect the island's airport, To Vima said. Santorini, renowned for its beautiful sunsets and picturesque villages perched on rocky outcrops, is one of Greece's most popular travel destinations, drawing scores of thousands of visitors annually.