The Agios Lazaros neighborhood in Larnaca is no longer threatened by floods.
On Tuesday, February 13, a new stormwater system was handed over to the local municipality.
The work that lasted almost 1.5 years has finally been completed. About 2 million euros were spent on the installation of the modern flood control system. Of this, 85% was financed by the EU.
Mayor Andreas Vyras and Larnaca Sewerage Authority (SALA) Council Director Angelos Hadjicharalambous were called in to check on the progress.
Flood mitigation projects in Larnaca cover areas of the city facing serious flooding problems, Vyras said during the audit.
He noted that the Agios Lazaros neighborhood is one of the most problematic areas of the city as it has been suffering from flooding for many years. Viras stressed that the works in the city center included the construction of a 1.897 km long storm sewer serving the catchment area on both sides of Faneromeni Avenue.
For his part, the head of SALA said that the organization recently issued an open tender for the asphalting of roads affected by the floods. The application is still open. In addition, within days SALA will launch a third flood mitigation project, also funded by the EU. It will cover areas west of Agios Anargyros Avenue in Larnaca, extending to Spirou Kyprianou Avenue.
As a reminder, Larnaca is one of those cities in the world where the sun shines 300 days a year. However, the rare storms that hit it during the winter months cause a lot of inconvenience to the locals. The lack of an effective storm water drainage system is the main cause of constant flooding in Larnaca. It is estimated that in the last 8 years alone, heavy rainfall has caused over €2 million worth of damage to the area. Realizing the need to address the cause of the constant flooding, the local Municipality has announced its intention to implement flood control projects in all districts.