Watch: Skies over parts of Greece turn ‘orange’ after Sahara dust storm

Strong winds carrying dust from the Sahara Desert turned the sky “orange” over large parts of Greece, including the capital city of Athens, on Tuesday. This deteriorated the air quality and spiked temperatures, in what officials said was one of the worst such incidents since 2018.

The extent of the worsened air quality was such that the Acropolis in Athens was not visible due to the dust storm, according to reports, prompting warnings from the authorities of breathing risks. Meanwhile, parts of the southern island of Crete recorded a temperature of 30 degrees Celsius, while higher temperatures were registered across northern Greece.

The country had witnessed similar weather conditions during late March and early April, BBC reported.

“It’s one of the most serious episodes of dust and sand concentrations from the Sahara since March 2018, when the clouds invaded the island of Crete in particular,” Kostas Lagouvardos, weather research director at the Athens Observatory, told The Guardian.

A man makes his way to a hill as dust from the Sahara desert covers the city of Athens. (Reuters)

The strong southerly winds over the past few days have also fanned unseasonal early wildfires in the country’s south. The fire service said on Tuesday evening that a total of 25 wildfires broke out across the country in the past 24 hours, The Guardian reported. However, no major damage or injuries were reported.

An X user posted a video saying, “What’s going on – I never saw this – It’s completely Orange – the Sun should be there.”

🚨🇬🇷 Athens, Greece 23/04/2024

“What’s going on – I never saw this – It’s completely Orange – the Sun should be there” pic.twitter.com/kQWT26OOOX

— Concerned Citizen (@BGatesIsaPyscho) April 23, 2024

A user wrote: “Yea I witnessed the weirdest sky over Athens yesterday.” While another user said, “Greek Athens was either covered in sand or as if it were ashes.”

Yea I witnessed the weirdest sky over Athens yesterday pic.twitter.com/m8zvkACwA0

— Electric KC⚡️ (@EKC_DAO) April 24, 2024

🔥🌎 🇬🇷#Greece In Athens, due to a sandstorm that came from the Sahara, the sky turned orange. #ClimateEmergency

Greek Athens was either covered in sand or as if it were ashes… #climat #ClimateCrisis #GlobalWarming pic.twitter.com/SfUmPzmZb0

— 𝐀𝐧𝐧𝐚 𝐊𝐎𝐌𝐒𝐀 | 🇪🇺🇫🇷🇵🇱🇺🇦 (@tweetforAnna) April 24, 2024

The highest levels of dust are likely to be concentrated in the eastern regions as the cold front, carrying fresh and clean air, moves in from the west. As the week progresses, the Eastern Mediterranean will experience a return of fresher and cleaner air, along with temperatures that will be closer to normal for this time of year, the BBC reported.

(With agency inputs)

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