Greek islands Rhodes and Lemnos declare state of emergency after deadly storm wreaks havoc

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Authorities on the Greek islands Rhodes and Lemnos declared a state of emergency Monday after storms battered the islands, leaving two dead and widespread damage.

Rescue teams, assisted by the military and local authorities, rescued many older residents in flood-hit areas, after strong winds and torrential rain over the weekend flipped cars, caused power outages and damaged roads.

Two men were killed in a flooded village on Lemnos, while scores of people were evacuated and taken to hotels in the island’s main port.

Vassilis Kikilias, the minister for climate crisis and civil protection, urged residents in storm-hit areas to comply with evacuation orders that are announced using cellphone push alerts.

“It is a thousand times better to comply with potentially excessive warnings than to face tragedy,” the minister told private Skai television.

Kikilias has pointed to climate change as the cause of worsening weather conditions in Greece in recent years, including an unprecedented series of heatwaves that intensify wildfires, a severe drought this year and massive floods in central Greece in 2023.

Rail travel on the Greek mainland was disrupted Monday. Weather warnings remained in effect for islands of the eastern Aegean islands, as well as parts of central and southern mainland Greece.