Athens sinks under a huge blanket of snow. The streets are in sheer chaos, thousands are stuck on the highway. Now Prime Minister Mitsotakis admits mistakes.
Athens – The Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has apologized to the population for the chaos during the snow storm of the past few days.
“There were mistakes and shortcomings that need to be corrected,” the prime minister said on television on Wednesday.
With unusually heavy snowfall over the greater Athens area, thousands of people got stuck in their cars on the city highways at the beginning of the week. Some had to wait more than 22 hours for the military to extricate them from the situation. Those affected are now to be compensated by the private company operating the motorway with 2,000 euros each. Their boss has already resigned.
Not all Greeks are happy with this compensation. “Why did you set off without snow chains, why did you set off at all?” Was the message on social media addressed to the compatriots. Because cars and trucks were parked across the snow-covered road, clearing equipment could not pass.
It rarely snows in Athens, and when it does, it snows lightly. Accordingly, people are not prepared for it and hardly anyone has winter tires. dpa
