floodwater washes away cars as it sweeps through Greek island
By PERKIN AMALARAJ
A powerful storm has lashed the Greek island of Paros, triggering widespread flooding and prompting authorities to close schools and impose a ban on all traffic except emergency vehicles.
Heavy rainfall in the island's holiday towns of Parikia and Naousa caused floodwaters that surged through streets, carrying cars and debris past whitewashed buildings.
Authorities on Paros said 13 people stranded in the storm were taken by firefighters to their homes, adding that no-one was reported injured or missing.
Video footage from the island showed a mass of water coursing through the streets of once-idyllic holiday towns and completely sweep over cars, dragging them away from where they were parked.
In one clip taken before the ban showed cars wading through inches of muddy rainwater that had flooded streets.
Fast-flowing water was seen coursing 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.
Heavy rainfall in the island's holiday towns of Parikia and Naousa caused floodwaters that surged through streets
Video footage from the island showed a mass of water coursing through the streets of once-idyllic holiday towns and completely sweep over cars, dragging them away from where they were parked
Several wrecked cars were seen tossed asunder by the raging waters, with massive frontal damage on many of them
Paros Mayor Kostas Bizas, speaking on local media, 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.
The authorities ordered schools on Paros to remain closed on Tuesday, while the civil protection service sent mobile phone alerts instructing residents to stay indoors.
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.
Local meteorologists are expecting the bad weather across Greece to continue well into Tuesday, with the Ionian Islands, mainland regions, Macedonia, Thrace, the Aegean Sea, and Attica all set to be pummelled.
The country's National Meteorological Service has issued an updated Emergency Weather Bulletin, forecasting locally severe rain and thunderstorms from Monday afternoon through until Wednesday morning.
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