Greeks urged to conserve power amid heat wave

Citizens were asked to voluntarily conserve power on Monday as the heat wave that is baking Greece strained the country’s energy grid and raised the possibility of power outages.

Speaking to journalists during a visit to grid operator DEDDIE’s headquarters in Kryoneri, eastern Attica, on Monday, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said authorities had initiated all precautionary measures to avoid power cuts.

However, Mitsotakis urged Greeks to turn down the lights and turn up the thermostat to ease the strain on the country’s electricity system.

The appeal came as temperatures were forecast to rise as high as 46 degrees Celsius in parts of the country on Monday.

Mitsotakis said Greece was experiencing “the worst heat wave since 1987” when more than 1,000 people died amid scorching temperatures for over a week.