Greece announces flood relief package, toll reaches 15

Athens, Sep 11 (IANS) Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has announced the first package of relief measures for the massive floods that have so far killed 15 people, national broadcaster ERT reported.

"The state will stand by the side of people with no delays," Xinhua news agency quoted Mitsotakis as saying on Sunday during his second visit to the flood-hit Thessaly region within three days.

Procedures for the support of households and businesses will start on Monday and people who saw their homes, farms or fields submerged in mud waters will immediately receive financial aid to cover urgent needs, he said.

Further compensations and funding to restore their properties and rebuild destroyed infrastructure will follow, he added.

The storm dubbed "Daniel" lashed Greece for two days starting from September 4.

The floodwaters started receding on September 7 evening.

Entire villages in some areas can be approached only by boats and helicopters, and dozens of people receive food, water and medicines by drones, Greek national news agency AMNA reported on Sunday.

A total of 4,486 people have been evacuated to safety since September 5, the Fire Brigade said on Sunday evening.

More than 70,000 hectares of land were submerged by water and mud, according to estimates of the National Observatory of Athens.

With thousands of farm animals drowned, the protection of public health is a top priority, Mitsotakis said.

Authorities advised people to drink only bottled water and avoid contacting dead animals, as crews have started removing them.

A large part of cultivations of the Thessaly plain, which is a key agricultural production area for Greece, was also washed away.

According to experts and local producers, it will take up to five years to get back to normalcy and grow produce in fertile soil again.