Saturday, February 23, 2013

Athens hit by worst storms in 50 years

By Jamie Lindsay

4:51PM GMT 22 Feb 2013

A woman died and numerous commuters were left stranded in Athens after the Greek capital was hit by its worst storm in 50 years on Friday.

Athens hit by worst storms in 50 years

A woman is stuck in her car as flood waters gush past her Photo: REUTERS

At least 900 calls were made to the fire department requesting for aid to pump water out of homes, with many basements being inundated.

Another 90 rang asking for assistance after being ensnared in their cars. Many cars were seen to be swept and overturned by the deluge.

A 27-year-old woman died from a suspected heart attack after being extracted from her marooned vehicle by other motorists, in the northern suburb of Halandri.

The Greek city suffered power outages overnight, after a river bank bursting. Early commuters were brought to a standstill as a result of the flooding. A house collapsed in the city centre, but no injuries were reported.

The flooding culminated in havoc for public transport as the tram system was stalled for an hour while rail schedules were temporarily postponed after a tree fell on the tracks.

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Police also had to close underpasses and highways in low-lying parts of Athens after they were submerged.

Officials said up to 2.3 inches of rain fell in a few hours, more than the monthly average of 1.9 inches.

"This is the worst storm since 1961. We're talking about 52 years without ever having seen such a heavy downpour in this area." meteorologist Yannis Kallianos said.

Clearing water from a parliamentary roof, a worker was left dangling through a glass ceiling after tripping as she tried preventing water dripping into the assembly hall prior to a debate.

"The worker could have landed on our heads," Sports Minister Yiannis Ioannidis said.

Athens hit by worst storms in 50 years - Telegraph