Italy is hit by landslides and floods whereas lethal storm lashes Greece as Europe is pounded by wild Easter vacation climate

A massive landslide has left around 90 people stranded in Italy, while a man has died near Athens as storm ‘Erminio’ lashed Greece with gale-force winds and massive waves, causingfloods and disrupting transport.

Heavy rainfall unleashed a mudslide on Thursday in the village of Piceno in central Italy, blocking a main road and leaving dozens of residents deserted. 

Separately, a rockfall in the southern town of Rapolla forced the evacuation of three families living in an apartment block, with social media footage showing a jagged cliff edge with thick slabs of concrete overhanging the edge. 

Meanwhile, a bridge in Montenero di Bisaccia, a town on the eastern coast, collapsed into the Trigno River following severe flooding, interrupting several roads in the surrounding area. 

In Greece, the body of a man was recovered in the seaside holiday town of Nea Makri as homes were flooded following heavy rainfall.

The fire department said the man in his fifties was found trapped under a car. He was believed to have been carried away by a torrent as he attempted to cross a street, local media reported. 

The fire brigade added that it had received nearly 500 emergency calls in the greater Athens area, including more than 30 rescue requests.

Authorities issued emergency warnings and shut down schools in areas east of Athens, the Dodecanese islands, the Cycladic islands and Crete. On the island of Poros, flooding knocked down a bridge.

Most of Greece’s ferries, a key transport link for the country’s many Mediterranean islands, were confined to port on Wednesday.

Early on Thursday, crews were still removing debris, pumping water from flooded buildings and repairing damaged infrastructure east of the capital.  

The EMY state weather service in a statement forecast ‘severe weather’ for Thursday in most parts of the country, with prolonged and intense rain and thunderstorms, and possibly localised hailstorms.

Bad weather caused extensive damage on the holiday island of Rhodes, where violent winds blew at 70 miles per hour, while waves reached 15ft, forcing dozens of flights to be cancelled at Diagoras airport.

Dramatic footage showed forceful winds billowing through Faliraki beach in Rhodes, with palm trees shown swaying and huge waves forming. 

On Wednesday, several Easter holiday flights to Crete had to be rerouted as a Saharan dust storm blanketed the island.

Travel chaos unfolded as thick African dust smothered visibility, grounding aircraft and disrupting arrivals at Heraklion’s main airport. 

At least two flights were forced to divert after visibility dropped to around 1,000 metres, a level considered unsafe for landing. 

A British Airways service from London was rerouted to Corfu, while a SKY Express flight from Brussels was sent to Athens.

Air travel across the island remains under pressure as the dense dust cloud continues to hang over Crete, causing delays and operational disruption.

Dramatic scenes were also reported on the ground, where a powerful tornado flipped a truck in the coastal area of Pachia Ammos as it prepared to load agricultural exports.

The violent weather also uprooted trees, damaged greenhouses and caused part of a wall at a ceramics factory to collapse.

In Ierapetra, huge waves surged into the first houses along the old town, as strong southerly winds whipped up dangerous coastal conditions.

Across Heraklion, the landscape has been transformed into something resembling the Sahara, with a thick veil of dust almost completely obscuring the port.

The air turned suffocating, with extremely high concentrations of dust particles making conditions hazardous, particularly for vulnerable residents.

In Chania, light rain mixed with the dust to create a layer of mud coating homes, cars and streets, as visibility dropped sharply across the city.

Air quality readings plunged into the ‘very poor’ category, with particle pollution far exceeding safe limits, according to regional monitoring stations.

Meteorologists say dust levels have surged to more than 1,000 micrograms per cubic metre, an exceptionally high concentration, with conditions expected to ease slightly later in the day.

Greece, which sits at Europe’s southernmost tip, has suffered destructive floods and wildfires in recent years, which analysts attribute to a rapidly warming climate. 

As Spain’s Catholic community prepares for its Holy Week celebrations, orange alerts were issued in Catalonia on Thursday, with strong winds expected to reach 50m/h, while waves could reach 15ft.

Footage shared on social media showed sailboats docked at a marina being rocked in the water as wind created ferocious spells.

Another clip showed massive waves crashing onto a beach in the Balearic region.

A separate video showed two girls struggling to walk as forceful gales blew against them.  

According to the State Meteorological Agency (AEMET), there are also yellow warnings in Valencia and in the Balearic Islands. 

Elsewhere in Italy, heavy rainfall along the country’s Adriatic coast and its southern regions unleashed chaos.

Torrential rains have relentlessly lashed Puglia, Calabria and Sicily, leading to widespread flooding.

At least 14 rivers across the country have burst their banks, inundating residential areas and causing severe traffic disruptions.

Roads and railways have come to a standstill across several areas in the country. 

Meanwhile, the Apennine Mountains have been hit with unprecedented snowfall, with accumulations exceeding one metre of snow in several areas on Thursday. 

Despite current stormy conditions, Spain is bracing for a heatwave on Easter Monday, with temperatures set to reach up to 30 degrees Celsius. 

Central Madrid will see temperatures in the mid-20s, with the capital Madrid expecting to reach highs of 27 degrees.

Temperatures will be even higher in southern Spain, with Seville bracing for 30 degrees.