As the most intense phase of this week’s storm Erminio moves across Greece, the country’s Risk Assessment Committee convened Wednesday morning — chaired by civil protection secretary general Nikos Papaefstathiou and attended by Minister Giannis Kefalogiannis — to coordinate the national response. Among their warnings: landslide risk in historically vulnerable areas, and a reminder that drivers are legally required to carry snow chains. Authorities have also issued an urgent movement restriction for the Peloponnese regional units of Arkadia and Lakonia, asking residents to avoid all non-essential travel from noon through the evening.


Seven regions are under Red Code civil protection status: Attica, Central Greece, Thessaly including the Sporades, the Peloponnese, the South Aegean, and the regional units of Imathia and Pieria in Central Macedonia. For red-alert zones, authorities have warned of locally intense rainfall with possible precipitation exceeding 80 millimeters, extensive flooding, a significant risk to life, possible area evacuations, and serious disruption to transport, communications, electricity and water supply.

Red alerts are in force Wednesday for Attica, the eastern Peloponnese, eastern central Greece, Euboea, Thessaly, the Sporades and the Dodecanese. Orange warnings cover the Ionian Islands, the Cyclades, Crete, the Eastern Aegean and Pieria. Gale-force winds of up to 10 Beaufort are expected in the Dodecanese, with heavy snowfall forecast in the mountains of Epirus and Macedonia. The Ministry of Civil Protection has been on continuous alert since Tuesday, with back-to-back meetings to coordinate the state response.

The storm will carry into Thursday. Crete — particularly its western and southern parts — will be under a red alert from midday through late night. Orange warnings will cover the western and southern Peloponnese, northern Euboea, eastern Thessaly, eastern central Greece, the Macedonian regional units of Chalkidiki and Serres, eastern Macedonia, Thrace and the Eastern Aegean. The Risk Assessment Committee will reconvene on Thursday morning.