Greeks mourn "hero of Aegean" who saved thousands of refugees

FILE PHOTO: Greek Coast Guard Lieutenant Kyriakos Papadopoulos stands next to Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras during Tsipras's visit to the island of Lesbos, Greece October 6, 2015. Eurokinissi via REUTERS

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greeks mourned on Wednesday "the hero of the Aegean" who is credited with having rescued more than 5,000 refugees fleeing in small rubber boats across the sea at the height of Europe's migrant crisis in 2015.

Coast Guard Lieutenant Kyriakos Papadopoulos died late on Tuesday of a heart attack. Greek media gave his age as 44.