Two dead as northern Italy battered by severe storms

Italian News

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WEATHER

Two people died on Thursday and around a hundred others were evacuated in Tuscany, local authorities said, as storms, heavy rain and hail hit many parts of northern Italy.

Published: 18 August 2022 15:48 CEST

Rainstorms and strong winds are currently battering Italy’s northern regions, causing damage to people and property. Photo by Pascal GUYOT / AFP

Both victims were hit by falling trees, local media reports said.

Four people were injured by toppling trees at the seaside camping site of Marina di Massa, while four others were rushed to hospital in the medieval town of Barga after the car they were travelling in was hit by a torn-off roof, according to local news site Toscana in Diretta.

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The civil protection agency prepared emergency accommodation in schools and gyms for those forced from their homes after bad weather toppled trees and tore off roofs in the area.

Several regions reported serious incidents involving both people and property on Thursday,

A map showing areas on amber or yellow alert for storms on Thursday, August 17th. Image: Dipartimento Protezione Civile (Italy’s civil protection agency)

Photos and videos shared on social media on showed the damage caused to homes and businesses in the Liguria region after severe storms hit the north-western coast of Italy overnight.

Winds of up to 120km/h hit the coast, while heavy rain reportedly caused damage to power lines and the Genoa-La Spezia railway.

The mayor of Sestri Levante, on Liguria’s coast, said homes, businesses and beach facilities had been “heavily hit” and the local authority had “requested a ‘state of calamity’ given the extraordinary extent of the damage.”

Hailstones of up to 4-5 centimetres in diameter were reported in the Ligurian provinces of Chiavari and Sestri Levante.

In Boara, near Ferrara (Emilia-Romagna), a whirlwind (tromba d’aria in Italian) caused the collapse of a construction crane.

No one was reported injured in the incident, though the crane caused serious damage to three houses located in the area.

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As a precautionary measure, the mayor of Milan shut all public parks enclosed by fences and has advised residents not to walk in the proximity of trees or scaffolding of any kind.

The extreme weather of the past few hours is being caused by masses of low-pressure air moving south, according to weather reports.

According to the latest forecasts, extreme weather will continue to affect the north of the country until at least Friday, when the low-pressure area currently wreaking havoc across the northern regions might finally ease off.

The Italian Civil Protection department issued an amber alert for Lombardy and Veneto for Friday, August 19th, whereas a lower-level yellow alert will be in place for all the other regions in the north of the country.

Experts say climate change driven by human activity is boosting the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events, such as heatwaves, droughts and wildfires.

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