One dead as rain sweeps country
Storms in northern and southern Greece led to one man drowning and another going missing over the weekend, roads closing and dozens of homes and businesses being flooded. Heavy rainfall moved from the north of the country on Saturday to Attica yesterday, leading to the fire brigade being called to pump out water from some 40 basements in and around Athens by yesterday evening. The showers also led to a section of the Athens-Corinth national road in the area of Kinetta, west of the capital, being closed due to flooding, which caused several kilometers of traffic jams. A 41-year-old amateur sailor drowned off Volos in central Greece yesterday when he and his friend were caught in a storm while out on a yacht at about 6 p.m. The sudden change in conditions led to the vessel capsizing. The second man was able to swim ashore and notify the coast guard. An air force helicopter found the body of the unnamed sailor. A 46-year-old man went missing during a storm in Pieria, northern Greece, on Saturday. The SUV he was driving at the time was found in the Aisonas River yesterday. The missing man, a father of three, has not responded to calls on his mobile phone. Members of the fire service, police and EMAK rescue teams as well as local residents were taking part in a search for the 46-year-old yesterday. Eight people had to be rescued by boat after they were trapped in their cars on a country road in Pieria on Saturday. The heavy rain caused widespread damage to homes, businesses, farms and infrastructure in Pieria as well as nearby Imathia.
