ATHENS, Feb 15 (AFP) - One person was killed and four others were injured after a violent storm swept Greece on Tuesday, leaving substantial damage in its wake and causing chaos to the country's transport network.
A sailor aged 52 was swept off a quay by waves on the eastern island of Psara as he was struggling to moor his boat, a merchant fleet ministry statement said.
Ferry services to and from Greek islands from Athens' main seaport Piraeus were shut down and other merchant vessels docked there were told to wait for the storm to end before departing.
The atrocious weather brought down trees, cut power lines and disrupted both air and ground transport in and around the capital Athens.
Gusts of up to 100 kilometres per hour (60 miles per hour) were recorded in the city and the high winds caused serious damage to boats in Piraeus, fire fighting services said.
The national power company said some 10,000 homes were without electricity and telephone communications were also hit.
Two planes heading for the capital from the northern city of Salonika were unable to land earlier in the day due to the ferocity of the storm, while six other domestic flights were cancelled. International flights were delayed.
One woman was hurt in the city by a falling branch and another injured by a piece of metal sent flying by the strong winds.
A policeman and another person were injured in a traffic accident after a silo collapsed onto part of a motorway in the north of the capital, according to press agency ANA.
The authorities warned people to stay at home unless absolutely necessary.
High waves whipped up by the storm smashed through part of a breakwater protecting a marina for private yachts and pleasure boats at Piraeus. Several of the embarkation areas were damaged, according to ANA.
Boats were damaged in the ports of Rafina and Lavrio, east and south of the capital.
The emergency services were jammed with calls from people reporting fallen trees, street signs and television aerials. Several cars were damaged.
Many streets in the city centre were littered with debris, including fallen trees.
Forecasters said the bad weather was expected to abate later Tuesday.
Storm winds and heavy rain also hit neighboring Bulgaria, leaving over 170 villages around the country without electricity and leaving one person dead, Bulgarian national radio said.
A 56-year-old resident of the village of Chernoochene in the south of the former communist country drowned in a cafeteria Tuesday morning, after one of the building walls collapsed and water flooded the ground floor.
02/15/2005 20:06 GMT - AFP