Torrential waters tore through Nicosia’s Pedieos river, and a torrent turned the sea red at Agia Triada beach in Paralimni as Storm Byron battered Cyprus, yet the island’s dams remain critically low despite widespread flooding.
The country’s reservoirs stand at just 9.4% capacity, down from 25.4% this time last year, with parched ground absorbing most rainfall before it can reach storage facilities.
Andreas Chrysanthou, an officer at the Meteorological Department, said rain could continue until Christmas and possibly beyond. “We’ve covered up to 57% of December’s rainfall based on measurements from two days ago,” he told Phileleftheros.
“The rain gave us 60 millimetres of water from the 105mm allocated for December, reaching 50% of the total hydrological year”.
The rain should ease from today as the low-pressure system weakens, with weather clearing by Sunday afternoon. However, a new short disturbance is expected to bring rain and storms until Tuesday, Chrysanthou said, adding that “everything is variable”.
The disappointing inflow into dams reflects months of drought that left the ground desperately dry. Gianna Oikonomidou, senior executive engineer at the Water Development Department, said the soil “has not yet saturated” after the long rainless period.
Dam inflow over the past 24 hours reached 67,000 cubic metres, bringing the total since 1 October to 948,000 cubic metres. The previous day’s inflow roughly matched daily consumption, Oikonomidou noted.
The dams currently hold 27.474 million cubic metres from a total capacity of 290.804 million cubic metres, compared with 73.950 million cubic metres last year.
Storm Byron caused severe damage in the occupied areas, flooding the new presidential complex and parliament building. Roads turned into torrents, and cars sank in muddy water. The Kioneli dam overflowed, worsening conditions and prompting authorities to declare a state of emergency in the occupied territories.
Oikonomidou said the Kioneli overflow stemmed from heavier rainfall in that area and the dam’s capacity.
Today’s weather will remain mostly cloudy with local showers and isolated storms, mainly from midday onwards. Hail is possible. Sleet or snow may fall on Troodos peaks without settling, whilst strong winds up to force 5 will blow in the area.
Temperatures will reach around 17 degrees inland, around 19 degrees on the coast and around 8 degrees in the higher mountains.
Weather will improve noticeably on Friday and Saturday with occasional clouds. Sunday will be cloudy with isolated showers possible in the west during the afternoon, intensifying into storms.