Flash floods in Mandra, Western Attica, and Megara have left 15 people dead and at least 10 hospitalised, amongst whom a woman who has been placed on life support.
One person was released from hospital and the other eight are in stable condition.
Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras in a nationally televised statement declared Greece in national mourning even as the death toll has reached 15 so far.
He pledged that the government will immediately implement a series of relief measures to aid the disaster victims, both families and businesses.
The government plans to use army facilities and other public buildings to shelter and feed those whose homes were badly damaged.
Joint task forces are being formed and staffed with officials from the infrastructure ministry, as well as from the Attica prefecture and local municipalities to coordinate the response strategy.
Public engineers will assess the damage to buildings and infrastructure.
An emergency meeting had been scheduled for today at the prime minister’s office to review and coordinate management of the situation.
Interior Minister Panos Skourletis, Citizens’ Protection Alternate Minister Nikos Toskas, Attica Prefect Rena Dourou, Alternate Defense Minister Dimitris Vitsas, and the chief of the fire department were all called to the meeting.
Local roads were blocked by earth and debris and a section of the Athens-Corinth national highway was put out of commission.
The judiciary has ordered an investigation into possible responsibilities for the deaths and widespread damage.
Local residents placed hundreds of calls to the fire department to remove water and possibly trapped persons from flooded buildings.
President Prokopis Pavlopoulos, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, and opposition party leaders all expressed deep condolences and sorrow over the tragedy.
Two of the victims who were swept away by the flooding were collected by the Hellenic Coast Guard in the sea near Elefsina and Aspropyrgos, respectively. The two men remain unidentified.
All the dead were taken to the nearby Thriasio Hospital.
The Athens News Agency reports that a number of people remain unaccounted for in a disaster that destroyed local homes and businesses.
One woman who was trapped in her home by the flooding was found dead by authorities.
One man was found dead in his home and another, thought to be 60-65 years old, outside of a local Mandra business.
The Coast Guard and a special diving unit were immediately dispatched to the area.
Main opposition New Democracy leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis visited the Western Attica prefeceture offices in Elefsina to be briefed first hand. He expressed his deep sorrow over the “unspeakable tragedy”.
