Storms flooded communities on the Greek island of Rhodes on Monday, causing school closures and damage to shops. Water from an overflowing river rushed along roads and swept away cars.
Here's what to know
Flooding disrupted roads in Afantou and villages in southern Rhodes. On the island's eastern side, the town of Archangelos suffered heavy rainfall that overwhelmed a river and damaged businesses, according to Euronews.
Even after conditions eased by the morning, responders continued preparing for more rain and thunderstorms. The storms are part of a wave of severe weather across Greece, particularly in western regions and the eastern Aegean islands.
Heavy rainfall also struck Crete, the Dodecanese, and Central and Eastern Macedonia. According to the National Observatory of Athens and meteo.gr, cumulative rainfall reached 5.67 inches at Limenas Thasou by 5:40 p.m. local time, while Megisti Lavra on Mount Athos received more than 4.92 inches.
More background
On the island of Kalymnos, heavy rainfall dislodged a large boulder in Agios Vasileios. It rolled into a garage, damaging a parked car before coming to a stop above a cluster of homes farther down the slope, according to Kalymnos Mayor Giannis Mastrokoukos, who spoke to the Athens-Macedonian News Agency.
"If the garage had not stopped it, below there is a cluster of houses. And no one knows what would have happened," Mastrokoukos said.
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Hazardous travel conditions for students and teachers prompted officials to issue precautionary school closures throughout Rhodes' Archangelos and Afantou municipal units, according to the Municipality of Rhodes.
What's being done?
Civil Protection services and crews from the Municipality of Rhodes and the South Aegean Region were brought together in an effort to remove vehicles carried away by floodwater and clear drains.
Reopening routes and reducing travel risks for residents in storm-damaged communities were the aims of road repairs and cleanup. Crews also worked to restore water flow by clearing debris blocking streams and other locations.
Residents and visitors on Rhodes were urged to limit movement and follow local instructions in an alert that Civil Protection sent through the 112 emergency system.
Further rain continued into Tuesday, so emergency services remained on high alert.
Where can I learn more?
These stories cover deadly floods, bridge damage, and travel warnings.
• Last month on Rhodes, one person died after floodwaters swept a car into the sea.
• In Crete, floodwaters collapsed part of a bridge and sent a car into a river in October.
• In Spain, flash floods left one dead after Barcelona was placed under red alert.
• In Spain, floods left two dead and one missing as Catalonia urged residents against travel.
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