(CNN) People in Greece and Turkey are bracing themselves for a rare and powerful hurricane-type storm in southern Europe's Mediterranean region, due to hit this weekend.

The storm, often called a "Medicane" (Mediterranean + hurricane) has features similar to hurricanes and typhoons.

Spectacular visible satellite animation of #Medicane in the Ionian sea right now, it continues organizing and deepening while moving north. Pressure at 994 mbar, sustained winds around 100 km/h. Source: @meteociel

Forecast track details: https://t.co/LvjXFASDeM pic.twitter.com/SJ62FsMzPX — severe-weather.EU (@severeweatherEU) September 28, 2018

According to a study published in 2011 , only about 1-2 "Medicanes" occur per year. These powerful storms usually happen during the months of September and October, when sea surface temperatures in the Mediterranean are still quite warm, although they can occur at any time of year.

The current storm, called Zorba, triggered flash flooding across Tunisia and Libya over the past few days before moving north over the Mediterranean towards Europe.

A man walks alongside the Rafina Port during heavy storm in Athens, Greece on September 28.

Over the sea, the storm is likely to pick up more tropical-like features normally associated with hurricanes, such as gale-force winds and even an eye in its center.

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