Schools across the Attica Region (wider Athens), will remain closed on Wednesday as a powerful cold front with violent wind gusts moves into the country in the coming hours.
The decision was taken Tuesday following a meeting of Greece’s Risk Assessment Committee, chaired by Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Minister Yiannis Kefalogiannis and Civil Protection Secretary General Nikos Papaefstathiou.
Authorities have placed the country on red alert, urging local governments to implement emergency measures to ensure key road networks remain open and safe.
The weather conditions are expected to intensify from late Tuesday into Wednesday. The General Secretariat for Civil Protection has issued a “red code” warning for five regions set to be hit hardest: Attica, the Peloponnese, Central Greece, Thessaly, and Western Macedonia.
File photo of snow on the Attiki Odos Motorway in Athens on January 24, 2022. Photo: Eurokinissi
Snow has already fallen in several mountainous areas, including in Karpenisi, Agrafa, Florina, Parnitha near Athens, with conditions forecast to deteriorate further tomorrow.
The Rio-Antirio bridge in Patra, was closed on Tuesday to pedestrians, cyclists, motorcycles, caravans and heavy vehicles due to gale-force winds.
According to the National Weather Service (EMY), heavy rain and storms have been forecast starting Wednesday through to Thursday afternoon, accompanied by heavy snowfall in northern Greece and mountainous regions, as well as strong to gale-force winds.
Minister Kefalogiannis is set to convene an extraordinary meeting with relevant ministries and agencies later today to coordinate the emergency response and finalize preventive measures in high-risk areas.
The emergency 112 alert system will be activated to warn residents in affected regions. Drivers are reminded that snow chains are mandatory by law and essential for travel under severe winter conditions. Ferry services to the Greek islands of Andros, Tinos, and Mykonos from the port of Rafina have been suspended on Wednesday due to strong winds. Ferry routes to Kefalonia and Zakynthos from Kyllini have also been cancelled as well as to Kythera from Neapoli. More ferry service cancellations are expected in the coming hours.
