Greece battered by storms: over 100,000 lightning strikes, Athens plunged into darkness and a tornado on the coast

A powerful bad weather front engulfed Greece on Friday, bringing violent storms, furious winds, heavy rainfall, hail and a record number of lightning strikes.

According to meteorological data, in the last few hours alone, more than 100,000 electrical discharges have been recorded on land and at sea, an activity completely unusual for this season.

The capital Athens faced a dramatic deterioration of weather conditions during the afternoon. The sky darkened with threatening black clouds and shortly before 7:00 p.m. (local time) torrential rains broke out, accompanied by strong winds and intense lightning and thunder.

The extreme phenomena hit Greek territory extensively, causing widespread street flooding, damage to buildings, downed trees and traffic blockages.

The region of Fthiotida suffered considerable damage. Powerful winds downed trees, while roads turned into waterways from the relentless rainfall. In the town of Makrakomi, a violent wind tore off the metal roof of the Union of Agricultural Cooperatives building and hurled it about 100 meters away.

In the area of Larissa and its surroundings, powerful clouds filled the sky, while lightning illuminated the Thessaly plain. In some parts hail and crop damage were also reported.

Strong storms also swept through cities like Agrinio, Zakynthos, Volos, Trikala, Drama and Halkidiki. In the latter, residents were terrified by the appearance of a tornado near the coast of Psaroudia.

A rare phenomenon was also observed in the sea separating Sithonia and Mount Athos, where a waterspout formed, connecting the storm cloud with the sea surface.

Facing the danger from torrential rains and storms, Greek authorities activated the 112 alert system. Citizens in some areas received messages to exercise caution while moving around.

Warnings focused especially on Larissa, Fthiotida, the central and northern parts of Evia, Skyros, Magnesia and the Sporades islands.

Authorities urged residents to avoid unnecessary travel during the peak of the phenomena and to be vigilant about possible floods and objects that could be blown down by strong winds.

According to the National Meteorological Service of Greece, the weather instability will continue until the early hours of Saturday. The areas most exposed to danger remain the coasts of Magnesia, Evia, the Sporades, Larissa, Halkidiki and some parts of Attica.

Meteorologists warn that the storms may be accompanied by strong winds, hail and rapid local flooding.

A gradual improvement of the weather is expected to start from late Friday evening and during Saturday, while from Sunday Greece will return to more typical summer conditions with rising temperatures.