Greece records over 220,000 lightning flashes in twelve days

From 1 to 12 June 2026, satellite observations showed an unusually intense thunderstorm period across the Balkans, with about 667,000 lightning flashes detected region‑wide. Roughly 221,000 of those flashes occurred within Greece, marking one of the most active twelve‑day spans in recent years.

The most active day in Greece was 12 June, when 49,604 flashes were recorded. The next highest counts were on 9 June (28,801), 8 June (24,682) and 4 June (24,230). Hourly activity peaked between 11:00 and 12:00 UTC on 12 June, with 6,973 flashes in that hour. The strongest concentrations were in northern Greece, Thessaly, Epirus and parts of central Greece, while the southern Aegean islands and Crete saw considerably fewer flashes.

The analysis, conducted by meteorologist Theodoros Kolydas using data from the Meteosat Third Generation Lightning Imager, also noted that the lightning counts reflect flashes within clouds as well as those reaching the ground, providing a reliable indicator of storm intensity and duration.