Greece on High Alert as New Storms Approach

A meeting to prepare for a new wave of stormy weather in Greece took place at the Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Ministry on Sunday afternoon.

All relevant ministries, local government authorities, security forces, and representatives of the National Meteorological Service participated in the meeting, which focused on the briefing and coordination of measures and actions.

The Thessaly region is expected to bear the brunt of the new weather system, which will start on Monday and continue until Thursday at least, according to meteorologists.

The meteorologists say that there will be a “cold lake” phenomenon forming in the upper atmosphere, combined with low barometric pressures on the surface.

The stormy weather system started in the Adriatic on Sunday and is forecast to slowly move toward the southern Ionian before changing direction and heading toward the northern Aegean on Wednesday.

This slow movement, combined with extensive water vapor rising from the Aegean in the eastern mainland will lead to strong and lasting rainfall and storms.

The areas that will be most affected, therefore, will once again be Thessaly, central and northeastern Central Greece, Evia and the Sporades islands, and especially Pelion and Othryo.

From Wednesday on, the extreme stormy weather phenomena will also affect Crete and several of the Aegean islands.

Army crews to remove bulky debris ahead of the storm in Greece

The Thessaly Regional Government has asked for Army crews to remove bulky debris in the Thessaly area, which has not yet recovered from the deadly floods earlier in the month.

Thessaly Regional Governor Kostas Agorastos thanked Chief of Staff Konstantinos Floros for his immediate response to the request for army assistance in the removal of bulky debris ahead off new stormy weather forecast in Greece.

The area is still feeling the devastating effects of the floods that claimed the lives of sixteen people and tens of thousands of livestock, along with the total destruction of crops, two weeks ago.

Thessaly is regarded as the “bread-basket” of Greece. The water has receded but left a muddy layer on otherwise rich agricultural lands. Restoring them to fertile conditions will take years and involve much more than restoring power and water and clearing up debris.

Locals fear that the new stormy weather coming to Greece will have the same destructive effect on their lives, as many of them have lost their homes and belongings.

Following the destructive floods, Greece asked for EU aid to recover.

“I am simply appalled by the recent disaster that has struck Greece and its people,” said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, before announcing up to €2.25 billion ($2.4 billion) in EU recovery funds.