Central Greece

The Environment Ministry is to resurrect the plan for the partial diversion of Acheloos River in Epirus, western Greece, the implementation of which has been annulled five times by the Council of State.

The project will be included in the water management plan of Thessaly and deemed as necessary to cover part of the water deficit.

The region of Fthiotida in central Greece is on alert after Spercheios River burst its banks near the village of Frantzi, south of the city of Lamia, flooding adjacent agricultural lands.

Attica and a significant part of central Greece were battered by severe storms, intense lightning activity, and flooded streets early on Wednesday. The adverse weather system named Elias is sweeping across the region, causing concern that lingers until Thursday.

Passenger shipping traffic in July and the first three weeks of August rose 10% compared to the same period in 2022.

Last year, traffic had already recovered to pre-pandemic levels, rising 36% from 2021; this year, it is expected to hit an all-time record of probably over 18 million passengers, compared to 17.5 million last year.

There is an extreme risk of wildfire Monday in many areas in southern Greece, including the Athens region, the Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Ministry warns.

Ships departing from the ports of Attica for the Greek islands on Monday and Tuesday were almost fully booked as people continued to quit the capital for the August 15 holiday, particularly for destinations in the Cyclades.

The trip from central Athens to Elefsina and the West Attica town's Old Olive Mill takes me through a hot, "post-industrial world in transition and looming uncertainty," just as the note on the exhibition I'm heading to promises. The show is titled "Elefsina Mon Amour: In Search of the Third Paradise," and it is the headline visual arts event of the 2023 Cultural Capital of Europe.

Eleven large-scale fires in the Attica Region from 2017 to the end of July 2023 have destroyed over 55,000 hectares (550,000 stremmas), the National Observatory of Athens/meteo.gr said on Monday after data provided by the European Union's Copernicus mapping services and the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS).

A spokesman for the Fire Service called Wednesday "the most difficult day of the summer," as firefighters from Greece and 11 other countries were battling a total of 90 wildfires, 61 of them having started in the 24-hour period up to 6 p.m.

The financial endurance of tenants looking for a property in Attica is at breaking point as a result of the rapid rise in rental rates in recent years, while salaries have failed to match the pace.