Athens (November 15, 2017): At least 13 people died on Wednesday and more were missing after a strong overnight downpour flooded three towns in Greece, officials said.
The flooding struck the towns of Mandra, Nea Peramos and Megara, a semi-rural area west of Athens where many factories and warehouses are based.
Television images showed tanker trucks, buses and lorries nearly completely submerged in the muddy torrent snaking through entire neighbourhoods.
The dead included a handful of people who perished inside or near their homes, a truck driver, a hunter, and two men who were carried by the raging water miles (kilometres) away to the sea.
More than a dozen people were rescued from an intercity bus, while others fled a Johnson & Johnson factory whose outer wall collapsed.
The deputy governor said rubble-clearing equipment had been moved to the area but could not be used until the water levels subside.
Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said the deaths had been caused by a “disastrous flood” and expressed deep sorrow for the deaths.
The fire service said it had received more than 300 calls for help and dispatched over 120 firemen to the area.
