The storm caused blizzard conditions in northern Turkey and mountainous areas of Greece, as well as accumulating snowfall in milder locations further south, such as Athens, Antalya and Israel.

Atmospheric conditions in the weeks leading up to Elpis were defined by a change of large-scale weather patterns: a persistent ridge formed over Western Europe and a series of dips in the jet stream occurred to its east.

[4] Diomedes, an earlier and relatively minor storm, had already brought heavy rain and mountain snow to Greece, while causing significant sea-level snowfall in the normally colder region of northern Turkey.

[7] As cold air continued its southerly movement, the moderately heavy rain that had started to affect Thrace and northwestern Anatolia, eventually transitioned into snow.

[22] Due to the instability of the cold air passing through warm waters above the Aegean Sea, the weather front also caused thundersnows in the regions of Euboea and Attica and a snowspout in Andros.