State of emergency declared in areas of Evros
The General Secretariat for Civil Protection on Wednesday declared a state of emergency in several areas of Evros in northeastern Greece, due to extensive flooding caused by the collapse of levees and controlled high-flow releases to reduce the volume of water in the Evros River.
The areas involved include settlements in Orestiada, Didimotichos, Soufli and Ferres where 8000 hectares were reported flooded by local authorities.
Evros Deputy Regional Authority chief Dimitris Petrovits has fully mobilised the Evros Regional Unit's entire mechanism to respond in case the level of the water on the river increases to dangerous levels that place inhabited regions at risk.
Turkish authorities at the border are also taking emergency measures and have been closing the Kastanies customs post at intervals due to extensive flooding in the neighbouring country, preventing the passage of cars.