Athens, 1 December 2024 (dpa/MIA) — A storm has caused severe damage in almost all regions around the Aegean Sea and left one dead on a Greek island, according to the local Greek fire brigade.

The Greek island of Rhodes, a popular holiday destination, was the hardest hit. Firefighters were deployed 600 times there to rescue people and pump water out of flooded houses.

On the island of Limnos, a village had to be evacuated due to flooding and a man lost his life, the fire brigade announced.

The Greek civil protection has banned vehicle traffic on Rhodes until Monday. Only the fire brigade, police and ambulance service are allowed to operate.

"We have had to deploy nationwide in 1,100 cases so far," a spokesman for the fire brigade told Greek television.

The storm was accompanied by strong winds. In the north-west of Greece, there has also been heavy snowfall, according to Greek radio reports.

The meteorological service has warned that the danger is not yet over. In the coming hours, heavy rainfall is predicted in central Greece.

The storm was preceded by a long dry period with unusually high temperatures. Such extreme weather conditions are expected to occur more frequently in future as climate change makes them more likely, the authorities said.