Greek Government Promises Full Support for Flood-stricken Thessaly

Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis reassured on Friday that he will do everything possible to provide assistance to the flood-stricken residents of central Greece.

Hundreds of people remained trapped in their homes or on high ground in the central plain of Thessaly, which bore the brunt of Storm Daniel’s relentless deluge.

During a meeting with mayors from affected areas at the Karditsa Town Hall on Friday, Mitsotakis emphasized the government’s commitment to aiding households in need and rapidly assessing the damages.

“We will do whatever it takes. I will mobilize all available European resources to provide additional support, primarily to cover the needs of affected households. Damage assessments will commence immediately, including home evaluations and compensation for those whose homes have been destroyed,” he said.

Mitsotakis also expressed his condolences to the relatives of the people who lost their lives.

“We will do whatever it takes,” the PM said who has come under fire over the government’s response to the disaster. “I will also mobilize whatever European resources are available so that we can have additional support, to cover first of all the compensation needs of households,” he said adding that: “We will find the money, whether it is national resources or European resources.”

Priorities for flood-stricken areas

The mayors of the region spoke of an unprecedented phenomenon and set the priorities of each municipality, with an emphasis on the rescue of citizens, especially the most vulnerable, on providing food to the citizens, on accommodating those who have been left without homes, on restoring electricity and water supply followed by the recording of the damages and the need to provide compensations quickly, as well as restoring the infrastructures.

Earlier, the prime minister flew over the flooded areas of Karditsa to examine the extent of the disaster.

Following torrential rains earlier in the week the Pineios River, the biggest river in Thessaly, has flooded and authorities are evacuating hundreds of residents of villages in the region of Thessaly.

At least 7 people have lost their lives in the unprecedented floods that hit Thessaly this week. Several are missing.

Thousands of people are trapped in several villages and tourist resorts of Mt. Pelion. Reports say that the infrastructure and the road network have been destroyed especially in the eastern and southern parts of Pelion.

The extreme weather has subsided and efforts are now being turned to rescue operations for the trapped and missing, the exact number of which remains unknown.