Fire crews rescue 23 people as storms flood Ierapetra’s Ferma area

Fire service crews rescued 23 people overnight into Saturday, October 3, as a storm system caused severe flooding in the Ierapetra area of Crete, according to Cretalive. Most of the problems were recorded in the early hours in and around Ferma and Makrys Gialos.

Firefighters freed the 23 people from vehicles and homes in the area, the report said. At the same time, the fire service received dozens of calls for water pumping as homes and businesses flooded from the large volume of rain the area received.

Flooding also hits Flamouriana

Serious problems were also reported in Flamouriana, within the Municipality of Agios Nikolaos, where large volumes of water carried debris onto roads. Crews were working at the scene to clear the material from the road network and restore access, according to the report. The storms have already forced schools to stay closed for a second day in Lasithi and Rethymno.

Conditions improve in Zoniana

Conditions were reported as improved in Zoniana and the mountainous Mylopotamos area, which had been hit hard by the storms over the previous two days. Despite the improvement, significant forces remained on standby in the area as the situation continued to be closely monitored. The latest flooding follows a wider pattern of storm damage across the island, including a storm that killed a livestock farmer in Rethymno amid flooding earlier in the week.