Strong winds cause problems in northern Greece

Gale-force winds caused numerous problems in the northern port of Thessaloniki on Thursday, both at the airport and in the city center.

At the Makedonia airport, flights ran smoothly until around 9 a.m., but a strengthening of winds later caused three departures - to Chios, Athens and Kalamata - as well as the arrival of the Kalamata-Thessaloniki flight to be cancelled, along with delays in other arrivals.

In central Thessaloniki, downed power lines caused a blackout in many parts of the downtown area that was affecting traffic lights, as well as the AHEPA general hospital, which is running on generators, and Aristotle and Macedonia universities.

Crews from power grid operator DEDDHE were scrambling to restore supply, but it was unclear what was causing the blackout.

Earlier in the day, however, falling trees caused power outages in the western municipality...