Athens News Agency: News in English, 06-01-25

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Inner Cabinet briefed on weather-related problems

[01] Inner Cabinet briefed on weather-related problems

One worry expressed by top government ministers was the prospect of subzero temperatures and accompanying frost overnight.

On his part, Public Works Minister George Souflias said the goal was to keep all national roadways open, as well as Athens' central thoroughfares.

Regarding the gridlock experienced at the Tempi Valley bottleneck late Monday and throughout Tuesday, a problem that generated the severest media criticism, Souflias said such incidents, albeit unfortunate, are not uncommon elsewhere.

"In Greece we need to learn to gravitate towards moderation and not exaggeration," Souflias merely noted.

Development Minister Dimitris Sioufas also briefed participating ministers at the session -- chaired by Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis -- that power consumption in the country on Tuesday exceeded 3,600MW, far higher that a 3,250MW figure recorded during a peak last summer.

The most serious power outage affected the Ionian islands of Cephallonia and Ithaca.

In other related developments, numerous schools around the country remained closed, as did most courts.

Conversely, the two largest airports in the country - in Athens and Thessaloniki - remained open.

The situation on the national and provincial road networks was mixed, as inclement conditions necessitated snow tires on the few cars and trucks that ventured onto the major Athens-Thessaloniki highway. A majority of the roads in the foothills and mountainous regions of mainland Greece - Epirus, Macedonia, Thessaly, Sterea Elladha and northeastern Thrace - were either closed to traffic or accessible only by properly equipped SUVs.

Some of the lowest temperatures, meanwhile, were recorded in mountainous Epirus (NW Greece), including a figure of -17C in one site, the so-called "Katara" district.

Finally, most of the longest ferry boat routes from Piraeus and Rafina (greater Athens area) to various Aegean islands were cancelled.

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