1.7 C
Munich
Monday, December 23, 2024

Skies over Athens turn ‘apocalyptic’ orange from Sahara dust storm – while Libya has red haze | World News

Must read


Skies over Athens have turned an orange hue as clouds of dust have blown across the Mediterranean Sea from the Sahara desert.

Strong southerly winds carried the dust clouds from North Africa and engulfed the Acropolis and other landmarks in Greece’s capital on Tuesday.

Image:
The Greek capital turned orange under the Sahara dust clouds. Pic: Reuters

People posted footage of the orange haze on X, formerly Twitter, saying they had witnessed the “weirdest sky”.

One person in Athens posted footage of their windshield covered in sand.

Another branded the scene as “apocalyptic” as they posted footage of their surroundings on the social media platform.

The skies in eastern Libya, meanwhile, turned deep red, looking more like the surface of Mars than Earth.

The skies are predicted to clear on Wednesday as winds shift and move the dust, with temperatures dipping.

Tourists visit the Filipappou hill with the views of the Acropolis, as African dust from the desert of Sahara covers the city of Athens, Greece
Image:
Tourists visit the Filopappou Hill with views of the Acropolis. Pic: Reuters

On Tuesday, the daily high in parts of the southern island of Crete topped 30C, more than 20C higher than what was registered in much of northern Greece.

The strong southerly winds over the past few days have also fanned unseasonal early wildfires in the country’s south.

Follow Sky News on WhatsApp
Follow Sky News on WhatsApp

Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News

Tap here

The fire service said on Tuesday evening that a total of 25 wildfires had broken out across the country in 24 hours.

Three people were arrested on the Aegean Sea resort island of Paros on suspicion of accidentally starting a scrub blaze on Monday, it added.

No significant damage or injuries were reported, and the fire was quickly contained.

Another blaze that broke out on Crete near a naval base was brought under control.

Read more from Sky News:
Attack victims’ families horrified by police WhatsApps
Ecuador’s notorious drug lord who escaped prison

Greece suffers devastating, and often deadly, forest blazes every summer, and last year the country recorded the European Union’s largest wildfire in more than two decades.

Persistent drought combined with high spring temperatures has raised fears of a particularly challenging period for firefighters in the coming months



Source link

- Advertisement -spot_img

More articles

- Advertisement -

Latest articles