While Rhodes and Kalymnos suffered from floods and strong wings, the island of Pserimos was declared to be in a state of emergency after the huge damages caused by the latest wave of storms and strong winds.
Pserimos, which is populated by 30 families, experienced unprecedented catastrophes, with houses and streets suffering extensive damages from flashfloods, while dozens of motorcycles and three cars were swept away in the sea. The fire brigade arrived on the island by sea on Tuesday in order to document the damages.
Kalymnos also suffered serious damages, with houses at the village of Agios Antonios being flooded, while the island’s capital Pothia was turned into an endless lagoon. There were also reports that the heavy rainfall created waterfalls and violent torrents in the mountainous regions of Kalymnos.
In Rhodes, the latest bout of storms caused new floods in Faliraki and Afantou, with streets turning into rivers and buildings flooding. The fire brigade was called out when lightning caused a fire at a greenhouse. The bad weather is responsible for short and regular power outages in Kalythies, Koskinou, Faliraki and the island capital city of Rhodes.
The Minister of Interior Yannis Michelakis is scheduled to visit Rhodes and Pserimos today, where he will assess the damages. His Ministry has ordered a grant of 150,000 euros to cover for damages in Rhodes. The money will be used to pay for workers who have been opening up roads and for fuel used by rescue vehicles.
Furthermore, the Public Prosecutor of Rhodes will ordered an immediate inquiry into the events that resulted in the death of three people – a 27-year-old teacher, a 67-year-old man and his 54-year-old wife. Turkish authorities reported that the body of man washed up on the coast opposite of Symi, which could be the 53-year-old English teacher who is still missing.
