Several Greek holiday islands have been devastated by floods after severe rainstorms turned roads into raging rivers and swept vehicles away.
Two of Greece’s most popular tourist destinations, Paros and Mykonos, have been left submerged in murky waters after what has been described as ‘biblical disaster’ rainfall lashed through the islands on Monday.
Dark skies loomed overhead and heavy rain quickly turned the streets into torrents, with footage showing cars being swept away in the deluge.
According to local reports, for several hours, driving through main roads in Paros was impossible as streams swelled and floodwater surged through the streets.
The extreme weather conditions made it difficult for rescue teams to access hard-hit areas, prompting authorities to advise residents to stay indoors as the rain was described as ‘dangerous’ and ‘out of control’.
Schools have been closed throughout the island, and officials on Paros yesterday said 13 people stranded in the storm were taken by firefighters to their homes, adding that no-one has been reported injured or missing.
A few hours later, Mykonos was hit with the same ‘extreme’ rainfall and hail, causing similar chaos to the scenes in Paros.
Footage from the island has shown roads flooded in brown water as cars and debris float past buildings also submerged in the torrents.
An emergency weather warning from the Hellenic Meteorological Service was put in place Monday, but remains in effect as the horror weather is set to continue throughout the day with the Ionian Islands, mainland regions, Macedonia, Thrace, the Aegean Sea, and Attica all set to be pummelled.
According to the meteorological service, the heavy rain and flooding will also move towards the Sporades, Thessaly, the Dodecanese and Crete.
The country’s National Meteorological Service has issued an updated Emergency Weather Bulletin, forecasting locally severe rain and thunderstorms from Tuesday through until Wednesday morning.
Meteorologist George Tsatraphyllias told Protothema: ‘In a few hours, approximately the entire month’s water fell on Paros and twice the amount of water that falls in the whole of March on Mykonos’.
He warned that the weather is so severe that sending notifications to residents via 112 would not be enough to effectively protect the population.
‘112 alone is not enough when people are untrained in dealing with natural disasters, especially when there is no appropriate infrastructure adapted to the new reality,’ he told the Greek newspaper.
Video footage from the islands have shown masses of water coursing through the streets of once-idyllic holiday towns and completely sweeping over cars, dragging them away from where they were parked.
In one clip, cars were seen wading through inches of muddy rainwater that had flooded streets.
Fast-flowing water coursed through the streets, with horrified onlookers watching from vantage points.
Several wrecked cars were seen tossed aside by the raging waters, with massive frontal damage on many of them.
Emergency workers were seen struggling to get the vehicles from the flooded streets, using large tractors to pull them from low, water-filled points.
Paros Mayor Kostas Bizas, speaking on local media yesterday, confirmed the severity of the situation: ‘The rain started around 3 p.m. and hasn’t let up. We’ve had drivers trapped on roads near Lefkes and the Parikia-Naoussa axis.’
On Mykonos, where the flooding was less intense, excavators were used to clear a path for floodwater and it gushed past seafront cafes and restaurants.
Municipal crews and private contractors worked to clear roads blocked by fallen rocks, while emergency services rescued stranded motorists.
Other nearby islands in the Cyclades group, which is south east of the mainland in the Aegean Sea, remain under severe weather warnings.