The Greek National Meteorological Service (HNMS) has issued an urgent weather warning for Greece, forecasting heavy rain, thunderstorms, and isolated hail from Wednesday evening, Feb. 4, in the northwestern regions, extending to western Greece, northeastern mainland areas, and the eastern islands on Thursday, Feb. 5.

Strong southerly to southeasterly winds, reaching 8 to locally 9 on the Beaufort scale, are expected to affect the Ionian Sea Wednesday through the evening and the eastern Aegean from Thursday morning until late afternoon.

More specifically, heavy rainfall and thunderstorms are expected in the following areas:

• Northern Ionian Sea (Corfu, Diapontia Islands, Paxos) and Epirus: From Wednesday night through Thursday morning.
• Other Ionian Islands (Lefkada, Ithaca, Kefalonia, Zakynthos) and Western Central Greece: From Thursday early morning until the afternoon.
• Western and Southern Peloponnese: From early Thursday morning until late evening.
• Eastern Macedonia and Thrace: From Thursday morning through the night.
• Northern and Eastern Aegean Islands: From Thursday midday until the early hours of Friday, Feb. 6.
• Dodecanese Islands: From Thursday afternoon until Friday morning, Feb. 6.

Residents and travelers are urged to exercise caution and stay updated on local forecasts as the severe weather system moves across the country.