General Secretariat for Civil Protection

The government is activating its confidential Artemis plan to tackle the Covid-19 virus, with the mobilization - possibly on Friday - of two new operational centers coordinated by the General Secretariat for Civil Protection, with a third in the process of being set up to have a supervisory role.

Greece's civil protection agency issued a plan for addressing the consequences of a possible activation of the volcano of Santorini, state-run news agency ANA-MPA reported Thursday.

An official from the General Secretariat for Civil Protection told the news agency the specific scenario, named "Talos," is part of an umbrella master plan to prepare for any natural disaster. 

The General Secretariat for Civil Protection called on citizens to take precautionary measures ahead of the cold snap forecast to arrive from the north in several parts from Tuesday afternoon.

On the first day of the year, the European emergency number 112 became fully operational in Greece, the General Secretariat for Civil Protection, which will be responsible for the service, has said.

Heavy showers and thunderstorms were forecast to sweep across the Ionian Sea and western Greece late Tuesday, before spreading east to other parts of the country, the National Meteorological Service (EMY) warned.

The General Secretariat for Civil Protection has warned of a very high risk of wildfires Friday due to the combination of dry conditions and strong winds.

The agency highlighted a Category 4 risk for Attica, the northern Aegean, the Peloponnese and mainland Greece.

The General Secretariat for Civil Protection has warned that the risk of wildfires would remain very high on Wednesday in six of the country's regions: Attica, the northern Aegean, the Peloponnese, mainland Greece, western Greece and eastern Macedonia and Thrace.

The agency said it has briefed regional and local authorities to be on standby for fires in those areas.

The risk of wildfires this weekend remains high in six regions around the country, according to the General Secretariat for Civil Protection.

With temperatures set to reach up to 38 degrees Celsius on Friday in parts and strong winds forecast for much of the country, authorities were on alert for a heightened risk of wildfires. 

Greece does not have the fortune of sharing a border with a country like Denmark or Luxembourg.