Weather improves but ice remains
Authorities began to breathe easier yesterday as weather conditions across the country improved, but government officials warned of lingering icy conditions and low temperatures. Electricity was restored to a number of areas in Greece that had been left in the dark over the last few days. Power was switched back on in 40 percent of Cephalonia and Ithaca by midday yesterday as a team of 110 people worked to restore electricity to the two Ionian islands. Highways were free again as snow-clearing equipment was shifted to secondary roads. Temperatures, however, remained low, making for some slippery roads and footpaths. «We appeal to all residents to be very careful when traveling, either by foot or by car,» said government spokesman Evangelos Antonaros. The thermometer in Nevrokopi, northern Greece, dipped to -17 Celsius (1 Fahrenheit) yesterday although it managed to climb to 8C (46F) in Athens. More than 100 remote villages were still cut off by snow, most of them in Evia and Karditsa. A number of schools in Athens’s northern suburbs will be shut again today while those operating will start lessons an hour later. The snow has given way to fears in the market that the cold snap will provide the ideal excuse for farmers and fruit sellers to jack up their produce prices.
