Greece’s National Meteorological Service EMY issued an emergency bulletin warning of a weather deterioration with sharp temperature drop by 8 to 10 degrees Celsius and snowfalls mainly in the central and northern mainland. At the same time, stormy winds of up to 9 Beaufort will prevail in the Aegean Sea, while strong rainfalls and thunderstorms will occur mainly in the coastal areas.
The weather change will be rapid with the effect that the long-lasting fair weather in January, will end abruptly within just a few hours. Main features of the cold weather front are forecast to be:
- the rapid drop in temperature
- the rains in much of the country
- snowfalls, even in low-altitude areas of the northern country
- the stormy winds on the seas
Maps forecast for rain (green) and snow (purple) at noon and early evening hours on Saturday, January 20, 2024.
EMY WEATHER WARNING
Snowfalls
a) From Saturday, January 20, in the mountains of Macedonia and Thrace and also in semi-mountainous areas in the afternoon.
On the night of Saturday to Sunday it will also snow in lowland areas of northern Greece and in the mountains and semi-mountains of Thessaly, Epirus and Central Greece.
b) From the morning hours of Sunday, January 21, snowfall will extend to the highlands of Peloponnese, Evia and Crete. The phenomena will stop in Thrace and from noon in Macedonia and Epirus.
c) On Monday, January 22, snowfalls will occur in the mountains of Sterea, Evia, Peloponnese and Crete. They will gradually stop from noon.
Winds
Gusty north-northeast winds of 8 and locally 9 Beaufort will blow:
a) From the midday hours of Saturday initially in the north and gradually in the central and south-western Aegean Sea
b) On Sunday, the stormy north winds will extend to the rest of the Aegean.
c) From the midday hours of Monday, the stormy north winds will be limited to 8 Beaufort, initially in the north and from the evening hours also in the rest of the Aegean.
A weakening of the winds is expected from the morning hours of Tuesday, January 23, 2024.
Heavy rainfalls and thunderstorms are forecast:
a. From the midday hours of Saturday until the early hours of Sunday in Epirus, eastern Macedonia and Thrace.
b. From the early hours of Sunday until the late afternoon on the islands of the eastern Aegean Sea, the Dodecanese and Crete. (sources; emy, meteo.gr)
It should be recalled that stormy winds in the Aegean Sea often disrupt sea traffic with the Shipping Ministry to ban sailing for ferries and other ships. If you to travel by sea on these days, contact local port authorities and travel agents.
