This year’s May Day has officially been recorded as the coldest in Greece in the last seventy years, as a sudden weather shift brought “winter” back to many parts of the country.
The country experienced an extraordinarily unseasonal and abrupt cold front bringing sudden temperature drops of more than 10 degrees Celsius and rare late-spring snow to regions with higher altitudes across the country early Saturday morning.
The sudden weather shift transformed typical spring landscapes back into midwinter scenes that resembled more of a cold December day rather than the 1st of May.
Where did it snow in Greece?
Mount Parnassos, a major mountainous landmark in central Greece that usually transitions into a warm-weather hiking destination by early May, recorded significant snowfall. Snow cover at higher elevations on the mountain reached between three and five centimeters.
Even further south in the Peloponnese, the mountainous areas of Corinthia also registered unexpected and heavy snowfall beginning on the evening of May 1. The unseasonal weather caught both local residents and holiday visitors entirely off guard.
The provincial road connecting the villages of Feneos and Zacholi, an area usually characterized by lush spring greenery during this time of year, was completely covered in snow. Local temperatures dropped sharply, resulting in freezing conditions well outside the historical norm for the first two days of May.
Data from the National Observatory of Athens and its extensive meteo.gr weather station network confirmed the severity and spread of the cold snap. Meteorologists recorded widespread frost early Saturday morning, heavily concentrated across the northern regions of the country. The lowest temperature nationwide was documented in the mountainous village of Seli, located in the mountainous area between Veria and Naoussa in the Imathia regional unit of Central Macedonia, where the temperature plummeted to a freezing -3.2 degrees Celsius (26 degrees Fahrenheit).
@megatvnews ❄️ Χειμωνιάτικο σκηνικό επικρατεί στο Σέλι Ημαθίας, με πυκνή χιονόπτωση και τον υδράργυρο να πέφτει έως και τους -3 βαθμούς Κελσίου. Από νωρίς το πρωί, εκχιονιστικά και αλατιέρες επιχειρούν αδιάκοπα στον οδικό άξονα που συνδέει τη Βέροια και τη Νάουσα με το Σέλι, διατηρώντας το οδικό δίκτυο ανοιχτό και ασφαλές για τους οδηγούς. Παράλληλα, εργασίες καθαρισμού πραγματοποιούνται και εντός του οικισμού αλλά και στο χιονοδρομικό κέντρο, ενώ έχουν διατεθεί σάκοι με αλάτι στους κατοίκους για την αντιμετώπιση του παγετού. 📹 George Farsarotos #News #MegaTV #fyy #f #MegaGegonota
Freezing temperatures were recorded across several places in the Macedonia and Epirus regions of Greece, too. The Nevrokopi and Florina basins are traditionally known as some of the coldest areas in Greece during the winter months, but recording frost there in May remains an exceptionally rare event. Weather stations logged -1.4 degrees Celsius in both Ochyro, located in the Nevrokopi municipality, and Vevi in the Florina regional unit.
@onparnassos 🔴 LIVE 🌨 Πρωτοφανής μαγιάτικη χιονόπτωση και χιονόστρωση σε σχετικά χαμηλά υψόμετρα! ❄️❄️ Σε αρκετά σημεία του οδικού δικτύου χρειάζονται αλυσίδες! 📍Δόκανο 1200μ. Εσείς πιάσατε το Μάη; #snow #onparnassos #springsnow #winterneverends #greece
The city of Florina itself saw temperatures hit -1.2 degrees Celsius (29 degrees Fahrenheit). Other northern and northwestern areas of Greece registering below-freezing conditions included Perithori in Nevrokopi, western Florina, Plikati in Ioannina, and Neochori in Halkidiki at -0.5 degrees.
The sudden cold weather front and the snow heavily impacted local communities across Greece. People were expecting standard spring holiday weather, but instead got a Christmas-like snowfall. Residents in Seli and other high-altitude villages on Mount Vermio, including Xirolivado, awoke to snow-covered neighborhoods on Saturday morning. Even in the lower-lying valley regions of northern and Central Greece, the weather front made its presence felt. Towns such as Florina, Kastoria, and Naoussa did not see snowfall, but faced heavy, cold rain combined with a steep temperature drop, heavily disrupting traditional outdoor May Day celebrations.
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