Athens, January 22 – Greece is reeling from a ferocious assault by Mother Nature, with heavy rains, gale-force winds, and intense snowfall claiming two lives and prompting red alerts across multiple regions. Northern Greece bears the brunt of this extreme weather, where authorities have issued emergency warnings urging residents to stay indoors.
A deep low-pressure system has unleashed chaos, bringing torrential downpours to low-lying areas, violent storms, and heavy snow to higher elevations. At least six regions, including Attica, are under red code emergency status. Central Athens and the expansive Attica basin were deluged with unprecedented rainfall by Wednesday afternoon, crippling road networks and stranding motorists.
Meteorologist Dimitris Giakopoulos reported record-breaking precipitation: ‘The rainfall exceeded our forecasts dramatically. We recorded up to 100 mm in Spetses, and over 140 mm in Megara and parts of Attica.’
Tragedy struck in southern Greece’s Peloponnese peninsula when a coast guard officer was swept away by massive waves at Astros Kynourias port, succumbing to severe head injuries. In another heartbreaking incident in Glifada, a southern Athens suburb, a woman’s car was swept away by floodwaters, leading to her death.
Schools across Attica and other affected areas have been shuttered, traffic ground to a halt nationwide, and ferry services at ports have been suspended. Drivers in severely impacted zones remain trapped, highlighting the scale of disruption.
Forecasts predict continued misery: western regions, Cyclades, Crete, Dodecanese, northern and eastern Aegean islands, plus eastern Macedonia and Thrace will see cloudy skies, rain, and thunderstorms on January 22 local time. Conditions remain severe in northern and eastern Aegean until late morning and Dodecanese until afternoon. Mountainous areas in central and northern Greece face intermittent snow.
Temperatures plummeted Thursday morning, hitting -5°C in Volakas, Nea Zichni, and Parnassos; -4°C in Vlasti; -3°C in Pontokerasia (Kilkis); and -2°C in Drama. As recovery efforts intensify, officials warn of prolonged severe weather, calling for utmost caution.