Μake us preferred on Google Heavy rain and thunderstorms hit the Mani peninsula in southern Greece on Saturday, causing flash flooding and dangerous conditions as torrents of water swept through roads and carried away cars.
The worst conditions were reported in the area of Kokkala in Laconia prefecture, in the eastern half of Mani, where 141 millimeters of rain fell in about four hours, according to the National Observatory of Athens’ network of weather stations and its Meteo.gr service.
The rainfall was about 10 times the average monthly rainfall recorded in the prefecture capital of Sparta in August and was accompanied by intense lightning activity.
Satellite images from Meteosat-12 at 5 p.m. showed the storm clouds over the area, while data from the satellite’s Lightning Imager recorded more than 2,000 electrical discharges within a 25-kilometer (15.5-mile) radius of the Kokkala weather station between 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. About half were recorded between 4:30 and 5:30 p.m., when rainfall peaked at 68 millimeters.
The severity of the storm was underscored by an incident in Oitylo, a historic village on the western side of the Mani peninsula, where a woman was struck by lightning while inside her car. She was injured and taken by ambulance to the hospital in Sparta.
The fire brigade received dozens of calls for assistance, while at least 10 people were safely removed from their vehicles.
Roads were turned into torrents within minutes and homes and tourist accommodations were flooded, causing extensive disruption during the peak of the August holiday period.
Mani is a rugged peninsula at the southern tip of the Peloponnese, divided between Laconia in its eastern section and Messenia prefecture in the west. It is known for its mountainous terrain, small coastal settlements and stone-built villages, with the southernmost part extending toward Cape Tainaron. The area is a major summer destination, particularly along its western coastline and around Oitylo, Areopoli and the Limeni area.
