Dangerous flash flooding across eastern Mediterranean leaves at least 2 dead
By
Adam Douty, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Updated Dec 15, 2020 10:47 AM EDT
Residents in Kyiv, Ukraine, struggled to walk up a sidewalk after it was coated in ice on Dec. 11.
The same storms that brought heavy rain, snow and wind across western Europe and the central Mediterranean last week produced dangerous, even deadly flash flooding across the eastern Mediterranean this past weekend.
“The storms will continue to gain moisture from the Mediterranean Sea and cause rounds of heavy rain to unfold across portions of Greece and western Turkey through Monday,” explained AccuWeather meteorologist Rob Richards.
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While rain began to fall on Saturday, the period with the greatest threat of flash flooding was Sunday and Sunday night as the strongest of the storms swung across the region.
Once location, Antalya, Turkey, has received an incredible 269 mm (10.59 inches) of rain since Saturday.
In Greece, Chios Airport has received 194.4 mm (7.65 inches) since Friday, with 124.3 mm (4.89 inches) falling since Sunday. Rain will continue to fall across these areas through Monday.
Through Monday, widespread rainfall amounts reached 50-100 mm (2-4 inches) across Greece and western Turkey which can produce isolated flooding. Even heavier rain will continue to fall in coastal portions of western Turkey where a widespread 100-200 mm (4-8 inches) is likely. In this area, an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 300 mm (12 inches) is expected.
A second area of heavy rain also developed across Greece in eastern Thessaly and central Greece where 50-150 mm (2-6 inches) of rain quickly fell Sunday night into Monday.
“The concern is that much of this rain can fall within a few hours' time in bands of intense rain and thunderstorms,” Richards added. “This can lead to streams rapidly rising and overflowing their banks.”
Unfortunately, this concern was realized in a deadly way for Izmir, Turkey. Portions of Izmir, the third-largest city in Turkey, were inundated by floodwaters when the Aegean Sea overflowed. The KarÅıyaka district was hit hardest by these floodwaters. Floodwaters submerged vehicles and lapped up against the doorsteps of large apartment buildings, the Daily Sabah reported. In the Menderes district, five people were swept away when their vehicle was caught in floodwaters. Three of these people managed to escape to safety while the bodies of two others were recovered Monday morning, local time.
The heaviest rain can also lead to mudslides across the rugged terrain of southwestern Turkey. Rain could be heavy enough to wash out roads and make travel dangerous and difficult.
In addition to the threat of flooding rainfall, there is the concern for strong wind gusts across the region, especially across Crete, the Greece Isles and the southwestern coast of Turkey.
Wind gusts of 60-100 km/h (40-60 mph) within the strongest storms can kick up dangerous surf across the Aegean Sea, Sea of Crete and western Mediterranean. This can also lead to coastal flooding in low-lying coastal areas.
Showers lingered into Monday, but the threat of new flooding was lower with the heaviest of rain ending. Dry weather is expected to make a return to much of the region on Tuesday.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
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News / Weather Forecasts
Dangerous flash flooding across eastern Mediterranean leaves at least 2 dead
By Adam Douty, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Updated Dec 15, 2020 10:47 AM EDT
Residents in Kyiv, Ukraine, struggled to walk up a sidewalk after it was coated in ice on Dec. 11.
The same storms that brought heavy rain, snow and wind across western Europe and the central Mediterranean last week produced dangerous, even deadly flash flooding across the eastern Mediterranean this past weekend.
“The storms will continue to gain moisture from the Mediterranean Sea and cause rounds of heavy rain to unfold across portions of Greece and western Turkey through Monday,” explained AccuWeather meteorologist Rob Richards.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
While rain began to fall on Saturday, the period with the greatest threat of flash flooding was Sunday and Sunday night as the strongest of the storms swung across the region.
Once location, Antalya, Turkey, has received an incredible 269 mm (10.59 inches) of rain since Saturday.
In Greece, Chios Airport has received 194.4 mm (7.65 inches) since Friday, with 124.3 mm (4.89 inches) falling since Sunday. Rain will continue to fall across these areas through Monday.
Through Monday, widespread rainfall amounts reached 50-100 mm (2-4 inches) across Greece and western Turkey which can produce isolated flooding. Even heavier rain will continue to fall in coastal portions of western Turkey where a widespread 100-200 mm (4-8 inches) is likely. In this area, an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 300 mm (12 inches) is expected.
A second area of heavy rain also developed across Greece in eastern Thessaly and central Greece where 50-150 mm (2-6 inches) of rain quickly fell Sunday night into Monday.
“The concern is that much of this rain can fall within a few hours' time in bands of intense rain and thunderstorms,” Richards added. “This can lead to streams rapidly rising and overflowing their banks.”
Unfortunately, this concern was realized in a deadly way for Izmir, Turkey. Portions of Izmir, the third-largest city in Turkey, were inundated by floodwaters when the Aegean Sea overflowed. The KarÅıyaka district was hit hardest by these floodwaters. Floodwaters submerged vehicles and lapped up against the doorsteps of large apartment buildings, the Daily Sabah reported. In the Menderes district, five people were swept away when their vehicle was caught in floodwaters. Three of these people managed to escape to safety while the bodies of two others were recovered Monday morning, local time.
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The heaviest rain can also lead to mudslides across the rugged terrain of southwestern Turkey. Rain could be heavy enough to wash out roads and make travel dangerous and difficult.
In addition to the threat of flooding rainfall, there is the concern for strong wind gusts across the region, especially across Crete, the Greece Isles and the southwestern coast of Turkey.
Wind gusts of 60-100 km/h (40-60 mph) within the strongest storms can kick up dangerous surf across the Aegean Sea, Sea of Crete and western Mediterranean. This can also lead to coastal flooding in low-lying coastal areas.
Showers lingered into Monday, but the threat of new flooding was lower with the heaviest of rain ending. Dry weather is expected to make a return to much of the region on Tuesday.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo