Bad weather alert upgraded to orange

With many areas still picking up the pieces after heavy storms on Monday, the met office has put Cyprus under thunderstorm warning until 8.00 pm on Tuesday.

The new warning is an orange alert which is a grade more severe than the yellow alert that was in force until 4.00 pm on Monday.

“Isolated heavy thunderstorms are expected to affect the area. Shower rates may exceed 55mm per hour with high risk of hail,” the met office said.

And it added: Be prepared for severe thunderstorms causing significant impact and protect yourself from lightning. Damage to property and trees may occur. Flash flooding, wind gusts and hail are possible. Transport and outdoor activities disruption can be expected.

The warning comes as unsettled weather grips Cyprus with heavy rain and hail. Moreover, around 10 houses in Astromeritis and 15 in Nikitari in the Nicosia district were deemed uninhabitable after a whirlwind struck the area at around 7.30am.

The whirlwind, along with torrential rains and strong winds severely damaged roofs, destroyed sheds, hurled solar panels and water tanks, cut electricity poles and uprooted trees.

 

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.