Crete floods trap 23 in cars, ERT reports

Flooding after heavy storms trapped people in cars and forced some tourist evacuations on the Greek island of Crete, officials said Saturday.

State television channel ERT reported that 23 people were trapped in their cars on the road between Ierapetra and Sitia. It said three tourists and their taxi driver had to leave their vehicle after flood waters began to carry it away.

Manolis Frangoulis, mayor of the Cretan port of Ierapetra, told AFP that a few tourists had been evacuated and that one woman was taken to hospital as a precaution. He said flooding had washed cars and trees into the sea and that crews were working to restore transport links.

Ierapetra, on Crete's southeast coast, was hit by torrential rain on Friday and Saturday, leaving roads blocked by debris. At the port of Canea, waves damaged seafront restaurants and tourist venues.

Greece's civil protection agency urged residents of several towns to limit their movements. Nikos Syrigonakis, deputy governor of the Heraklion region, told the Greek news agency ANA that emergency crews were clearing small landslides and road debris and monitoring streams and rivers.

The Greek national observatory said 42 cm of rain fell in the Canea department between Friday and 1550 GMT on Saturday. The EMY weather service said winds reached eight and nine on the Beaufort scale.