Stavros Arnaoutakis

The population of asylum-seekers who remain in specially built structures on the islands is reportedly constantly rising in tandem with the daily interception of migrant trafficking boats by the Greek Coast Guard.

The damage that viticulture has suffered from the recent heatwave is great, according to the president of the organization of grape-growers of Crete, Priamos Ieronymakis.

Authorities on Crete said on Tuesday that they had received a donation of 3,000 high-quality surgical masks from the Chinese Province of Hainan.
Crete's Regional Governor Stavros Arnaoutakis described the gift as "an act of humanitarianism and solidarity," adding that it showed that "the power of cooperation, of contribution and of protecting public health know no bounds."

Repair crews worked into the night on Friday to repair the damage from a blast at a Public Power Corporation plant in Iraklio on Crete, which had left many parts of the island region without electricity for several hours, including its industrial zone and the city center.

The damage to roads, buildings and infrastructure caused by the torrential rain and gales that hit the island of Crete earlier in the week will exceed 100 million euros, according to Regional Governor Stavros Arnaoutakis.

He said the precise cost will be known after a team of Infrastructure Ministry experts and local engineers complete their assessment of the damage.

On the third and last day of an official visit to Greece, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall were on Crete on Friday. 

The royal couple flew into the port of Irakleio on a private aircraft and were received by the Archbishop of Crete Irinaios, the regional governor Stavros Arnaoutakis and the Mayor of Irakleio Vasilis Lambrinos among other local officials.