The Risk Assessment Committee, which was established with the passing of the Civil Protection Restructuring Law in December and formed into a body last week, held its first meeting yesterday.

The object of the Committee is the continuous monitoring of all dangerous natural phenomena, the forecasting of possible consequences on the infrastructure, safety and health of citizens, the formation of the appropriate Grading of State of Preparedness of the state apparatus, as well as the proposal to take preventive measures to protect the property, safety and health of citizens, (e.g. suspension of obligation to work in combination with a traffic ban).

They took part in the Commission meeting the Minister of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, Vassilis Kikilias, the Deputy Minister of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, Evangelos Tournas, the Secretary General of Civil Protection Vassilis Papageorgiou, the Chief of the Fire Brigade, Lt. Gen. Theodoros Vagias, the director of the EMY, Theodoros Kolidas, the director Researcher of the National Observatory of Athens, Konstantinos Lagouvardos, the president of OASP, Efthymios Lekkas and meteorologists Dimitris Ziakopoulos and Christina Souzi.

The Minister of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, V. Kikilias welcomed the members of the Committee and wished them success in their tasks, and then organizational and coordination issues were discussed, as well as the data resulting from the meteorological forecasts for the deterioration of the weather today and tomorrow.

The Committee will monitor the evolution of the weather phenomena and will reconvene if necessary.

Civil Protection recommendations to citizens in view of the worsening weather

Recommendations to citizens to be especially careful, taking care to take self-protection measures against risks arising from the occurrence of severe weather phenomena, addresses the general secretariat of Civil Protection.

According to the updated Emergency Weather Deterioration Bulletin (EDEK) issued today by the National Meteorological Service (EMY), the weather in our country is deteriorating today Saturday (20-01-24) from the north with a noticeable drop in temperature (of of 8 – 10 degrees Celsius) and snowfall mainly in the central and northern mainland. At the same time, stormy winds will prevail in the Aegean and heavy rains and storms will occur mainly in the coastal areas.

More detail:

A. Snowfall will occur:

a) In the afternoon hours of Saturday (20-01-24) in the mountains of Macedonia and Thrace as well as in semi-mountainous areas.

On the night of Saturday to Sunday it will also snow in the plains of northern Greece as well as in the mountains and semi-mountains of Thessaly, Epirus and mainland Greece.

b) From the morning hours of Sunday (21-01-24) the snowfall will extend to the highlands of Peloponnese, Evia and Crete while it will stop in Thrace and from noon in Macedonia and Epirus.

c) On Monday (22-01-24) light snowfalls will occur in the mountains of Sterea, Evia, Peloponnese and Crete, which will gradually stop from noon.

B. Gusty north northeast winds 8 and locally 9 Beaufort will blow:

a) In the afternoon hours of Saturday (20-01-24) in the northern and gradually in the central and southwestern Aegean.

b) On Sunday (21-01-24) the stormy north winds will extend to the rest of the Aegean.

c) From the midday hours of Monday (22-01-24) 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 (23-01-24).

C. Intermittent heavy rains and storms are forecast:

a. From Saturday afternoon (20-01-24) in Epirus, eastern Thessaly, Macedonia, Thrace and possibly the Sporades.

b. On Sunday (21-01-24) until the morning hours in eastern Thessaly and possibly in the Sporades. From the beginning of the day until the late afternoon in the islands of the eastern Aegean and until the night in Crete and the Dodecanese.

In particular, in areas where heavy rains, storms or gale-force winds are predicted, the Public Health Service recommends to citizens:

* Secure objects which, if carried away by severe weather conditions, may cause damage or injury.

* To make sure that the gutters and downspouts of the houses are not blocked and are working properly.

* Avoid crossing torrents and streams, on foot or by vehicle, during storms and rainfall, but also for several hours after the end of their event

* Avoid outdoor work and activities in marine and coastal areas during severe weather events (risk of lightning strikes).

* Take shelter immediately during a hailstorm. Take shelter in a building or car and do not leave the safe area until they are sure the storm has passed. Hail can be very dangerous for animals too.

* Avoid passing under large trees, under posted signs and in general areas where light objects (e.g. pots, broken glass, etc.) can become detached and fall to the ground (e.g. under balconies ).

* To faithfully follow the instructions of the local authorities, such as Traffic, etc.

In areas where snowfall and frost are expected:

If they are going to travel by car:

* To be informed about the weather and the condition of the road network

* Have anti-skid chains on their vehicle and a full tank of fuel

* To travel, if necessary, preferably during the day preferring the main roads

* To inform their relatives about the route they are going to follow

* Change their travel schedule to avoid peak weather conditions

* To faithfully follow the instructions of the local authorities, such as Traffic, etc.

If moving on foot:

* Dress in several layers of light clothing instead of one heavy garment and wear appropriate shoes to avoid slippery injuries

* Avoid unnecessary movements during the peak of the phenomena (heavy snowfall, freezing conditions)

The general secretariat of Civil Protection (civilprotection.gov.gr) of the Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, has informed the competent government agencies involved in the service, as well as the regions and municipalities of the country, so that they are on increased civil protection readiness, in order to face directly the effects of the occurrence of intense weather phenomena.

At the same time, operational plans are being implemented to deal with risks from the occurrence of snowfall and floods as well as their accompanying phenomena, while the Fire Services of the areas where the phenomena are expected to occur, have been placed in a state of increased readiness and further escalation if required, in order to deal immediately with any problems caused by the occurrence of severe weather phenomena.

For information and announcements regarding the prevailing situation and the passability of the road network due to the inflow of flood waters into it or due to snowfall and frost, citizens can visit the EL.AS website. www.astynomia.gr.

For more information and self-protection instructions from severe weather, citizens can visit the website of the General Secretariat of Civil Protection at civilprotection.gov.gr

For information regarding protection against severe weather conditions, you can refer to the website and the official accounts of the Fire Department, Facebook and Twitter

Citizens can be updated daily on the development of extraordinary weather phenomena in the regular weather reports of EMY and on the website of EMY at the online address www.emy.gr