Affected by severe weather for two weeks, the Italian region of Emilia-Romagna experienced major flooding on Wednesday, May 17, which caused the death of at least eight people according to Irene Priolo, vice-president of the region. , estimating “over 10,000” the number of evacuees. President Stefano Bonaccini mentioned “several missing” to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
The streets of many localities in the plain were submerged by water after heavy rainfall and many inhabitants found themselves trapped, forced to take refuge in the floors or on the roofs of their houses, while many local roads were impassable.
According to the Minister of Civil Protection, Nello Musumeci, 50,000 people are without electricity. “If we had designed a rainwater distribution network capable of absorbing 1,000 millimeters in twelve months, we must now think of a system that will have to absorb 500 millimeters in forty-eight hours,” he said. commented. “Nothing will be as before because this process of tropicalization that is rising from Africa also involves Italy,” added Mr. Musumeci.
In this region of north-central Italy, the rains caused flooding and landslides. They occur after a drought of several weeks, which has altered the ability of the soil to absorb water. The “priority is to secure all the population concerned”, insisted the region in its press release published on Wednesday, May 17 in the morning, which details that “five hundred and ten firefighters are mobilized and one hundred” are being deployed.
“It’s probably the worst night in the history of Romagna”
“The rain is not over, it will continue to fall for several hours,” Titti Postiglione, deputy head of the Civil Protection Agency, told Sky TV channel TG24. The night of Tuesday May 16 to Wednesday May 17 was a “more complicated evening than the previous ones”, she added.
According to the region’s press release, fourteen rivers have overflowed and twenty-three municipalities are flooded, including Bologna. “It’s probably the worst night in the history of Romagna,” Ravenna Mayor Michele de Pascale told RAI, Italy’s main public broadcaster, Reuters news agency reported.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed her support for those affected by the floods on Wednesday, saying the government was “ready to intervene with the necessary help”.
This weekend was to take place, in Imola, the Formula 1 Grand Prix of Emilia-Romagna, the sixth round of the competition. The organizers decided to cancel it, explaining that it “would not be wise to put additional pressure on local authorities and emergency services at this difficult time”, without specifying whether the race would be rescheduled.
Last September, at least ten people died in violent weather that affected central Italy, flooding streets and homes. In November, at least seven people died on the island of Ischia, in the Bay of Naples, following a landslide caused by heavy rains.
