Regional units of Greece

The Tempe section of the old national road between Larissa and Thessaloniki will be closed from spring 2019 till the end of the year for maintenance work on the bridge across the Pinios River (pictured) as it nears its 60th birthday.

The Infrastructure Ministry granted its approval for the work on Friday.

Ferryboats remained docked in ports around Greece on Friday, cutting off connections between the islands and the mainland, as a storm dubbed Penelope swept across the country, bringing downpours and gale-force winds.

There were no ferry services from the ports of Piraeus, Rafina or Lavrio.

Several ferry services were disrupted on Thursday due to gale-force winds up to 10 on the Beaufort scale blowing in the Aegean Sea, the Shipping Ministry said.

All planned services from Rafina port to the Cyclades have been suspended, while the "Adamandios Korais" ferry scheduled to sail to the western Cyclades will remain docked.

The bitter truth is that it often takes a natural disaster to appreciate our history. The recent earthquake on the Ionian island of Zakynthos, for example, drew attention to the fortress-like Monastery of Strofades, which sustained significant damage in the 6.4-Richter quake.

Migration Policy Minister Dimitris Vitsas said Thursday there is a people trafficking ring operating on the island of Samos.

American photographer Robert McCabe and Greek journalist Katerina Lymberopoulou present "The Last Monk of Strofades: Report from an Unknown Ionian Island," a book published by Patakis that pays tribute to a historic Byzantine monastery on an islet off the coast of Zakynthos. The book holds special significance as the monastery was destroyed by an earthquake last month.

Greek authorities said Thursday that about 74,000 asylum-seekers are now living in the country, and efforts are under way to expand housing for them and improve conditions at island camps for migrants who arrive by sea, according to VOA News. 

Schools remained closed in the areas of Florina, Grevena and Kozani on Monday as a cold snap that set in over the weekend continued with low temperatures and snowfall.

The bad weather was forecast to spread to the Aegean, the Peloponnese and Thrace with storms expected in parts.

Windy conditions in the Ionian Sea on Saturday have prompted authorities to halt ferry services to and from the islands of Zakynthos and Cephalonia.

According to the Greek meteorological service, winds in the area reached 8-9 on the Beaufort scale.

The winter's first snow fell on the mountains of Kalambaka in the central Greek region of Trikala on Friday.

The overnight snowfall was light and continued into Friday morning, according to Dimitris Vourlitsis, deputy mayor of Meteora, the municipality that is home to Greece's historic monastic community.