Wintry weather hits roads, power lines, ferry crossings

Ferry boats were not allowed to sail from the Attica ports of Piraeus, Lavrio or Rafina on Wednesday or Thursday as gale-force winds trashed the Aegean Sea, though smaller ferries did make the brief crossing to Aegina.

Strong winds also caused power outages in several parts of Greece, including in Athens’s northern suburbs, as felled trees knocked down power lines.

Gales were not the only cause behind the unusually cold holidays this year, with snow and sleet coming down since Monday in most parts of mainland Greece, particularly in the north, and the Peloponnese.

Heavy snowfall caused havoc on the national road network, stranding motorists on Wednesday on the Athens-Lamia highway and in Arcadia in the northern Peloponnese, as well as tourists at mountain resorts like Pilio.

In Athens, several mountain roads were closed and motorists had to use snow chains in many rural parts of the city’s outskirts.