Extreme weather has paralyzed Greece, resulting in two fatalities amid relentless rain, storms, and blizzards. Red alerts blanket northern areas and beyond, as a powerful low-pressure front drives the onslaught.
Heavy precipitation battered lowlands with floods and gales, while snow blankets mountains. Six regions, prominently Attica, operate under highest emergency protocols, with directives for citizens to shelter in place and heed updates.
Wednesday’s deluge in central Athens and Attica basin shattered expectations. Expert Dimitris Giakopoulos noted, ‘This surpasses our predictions—100 mm in Spetses, exceeding 140 mm in Megara and Attica zones.’ Roads became impassable, isolating communities.
In Peloponnese’s Astros Kynourias, monstrous waves claimed a coast guard’s life via crushing head trauma. Glifada saw a vehicle—and its female occupant—engulfed by flash floods, ending in tragedy.
Authoritarian measures include school closures in Attica and elsewhere, nationwide traffic snarls trapping drivers, and halted ferry operations at all major ports. The ripple effects underscore the storm’s ferocity.
Weather outlook remains grim for January 22: persistent clouds, showers, and thunder over west, Cyclades, Crete, Dodecanese, Aegean isles, eastern Macedonia, and Thrace. Intensity peaks in Aegean until late morning, Dodecanese midday. Scattered snow hits central and north mountains briefly.
Chilly mornings Thursday registered -5°C across Volakas, Nea Zichni, Parnassos; -4°C Vlasti; -3°C Pontokerasia; -2°C Drama. With infrastructure strained and lives lost, Greece braces for ongoing meteorological mayhem, prioritizing safety and swift response.