Hundreds of British tourists find themselves stranded on the Greek holiday island of Skiathos due to severe flash flooding caused by torrential rain that has affected Greece.
With streets inaccessible and the airport disrupted, holidaymakers face challenges in getting food and returning home.
Local authorities have issued orders for residents and tourists to remain off the streets, while the island's mayor has requested a state of emergency declaration. The heavy rainfall has resulted in property damage, and hotels have experienced power outages.
One stranded tourist described the situation in the center of Skiathos as "underwater" and expressed the situation as "horrendously scary." Flight operations have been severely impacted, with no arrivals or departures since the previous morning. The lack of communication at the airport has further exacerbated the difficulties.
The disruption has also affected sea travel, with ferries to and from the island halted due to dangerous sea conditions. Passengers are uncertain about their ability to catch their scheduled flights home in the coming days.
Jet2, a UK-based travel company, has informed its customers that it is closely monitoring the weather conditions affecting Skiathos and prioritizing customer interests.
The flash flooding is a result of Storm Daniel, which has been affecting western and central Greece since Monday. It follows closely after Greece's battle with a devastating wildfire that raged for over two weeks in the northern part of the country.
The floodwaters have affected various villages, including Agria, Portaria, Tsangarada, and Stagiates, leading to unstable electricity supply and power disruptions. Thunder and lightning have also been reported on the islands of Skopelos and Alonnisos.
Tragically, a man lost his life when a wall collapsed on him near Volos city on the Greek mainland during the adverse weather conditions. Another man is missing in Volos, believed to have been swept away by floodwaters.
The flooding incident comes a month after wildfires wreaked havoc in Greece and several parts of Europe. Thousands of people were evacuated from towns and villages across Greece as wildfires ravaged areas like Corfu, Rhodes, Evia, Crete, and the northern Peloponnese region.
Among the affected areas, the island of Rhodes saw the most significant fire, leading to the evacuation of approximately 19,000 people from various locations. In total, 16,000 people were evacuated by land, and 3,000 were evacuated by sea from 12 villages and several hotels.
Although a wildfire in the Evros region, which burned for over two weeks, has been brought under control, it resulted in the deaths of 20 individuals, all believed to be migrants who had recently crossed the border. The massive blaze consumed more than 93,000 hectares of land, marking it as the largest single wildfire in an EU country since records began in 2000. Photo by Wisniowy, Wikimedia commons.