As bouts of heavy rainfall fell on Cyprus in January, several of the island’s reservoirs overflowed, some for the first time in years. In Paphos District, Argaka dam which has a capacity of 990,000 cubic metres, overflowed followed by another small dam in Pomos, which holds up to 860,000 cubic metres of water.

The Meteorological Office says that January was the wettest in the last 30 years with most of the rainfall in Paphos District. Arminou, Xyliatou, Tamassos and Klirou dams in other parts of Cyprus also reached capacity. Most significantly, last week Asprokremnos dam in Paphos District, the second largest dam on the island, overflowed after more than a week of speculation. With a capacity of 52.4 million cubic metres, Asprokremnos last filled in 2004.

The biggest dam, Kouris, could be next to overflow the Water Development Department (WDD) said. As of the last week of January, the WDD said that Cyprus’s dams were at an average of 65 per cent of capacity. A combination of rainfall and water inflow, and shorter days meaning less evaporation has caused the filling of the dams. The situation has been met with relief and jubilation, with snack vans selling their wares at the filled dams and punters placing bets on the precise time of overflow.

A serious drought in 2008 which saw the island forking out huge sums to import water from Greece is fresh in the memories of Cyprus residents. A water shortage means erratic or rationed supply in the hot summer months and the prospect of price hikes in the commodity. There are 108 dams in Cyprus, the oldest being built in 1900 near Kouklia. The newest is near Solea and has been under construction since 2010.

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