Catastrophic Flooding in Northern Italy Leaves Five Dead and Thousands Evacuated
Heavy storms have caused severe flooding and landslides in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna, resulting in the deaths of five people and the evacuation of thousands from their homes. The prefect of Forlì-Cesena confirmed the deaths, which included an elderly man, a couple who owned an agriculture company, and a German woman whose cause of death is unknown. The rainfall is expected to continue for several hours, according to Italy’s civil protection agency, which has warned of a “very, very complicated situation.” The worst-affected areas have been Emilia-Romagna and parts of the central Marche region, where 12 people died in floods last September.
The Emilia Romagna F1 Grand Prix scheduled for this weekend has been cancelled due to the flooding. In Faenza, a city in Ravenna province, people trapped in their homes could be heard shouting for help in a video shared on social media. The mayor of Faenza, Massimo Isola, described the flooding as “something unimaginable,” while the mayor of Cesena, Enzo Lattuca, called it a “disastrous” situation. A bridge connecting Motta-Budrio with San Martino in the area of Bologna collapsed overnight, and the fire service has warned people to stay away due to a nearby gas pipeline that appears to be affected.
Weather-related disasters have been on the rise in Italy, a country deemed particularly vulnerable to climate change. In 2022, the hottest year on record in Italy, 310 extreme weather events were registered, causing the deaths of 29 people, according to Legambiente, an environmental group. A report by Ispra, the Italian government’s environment agency, found that 93.4% of the country’s municipalities were at risk of landslides, floods, and coastal erosion, but the government has done little to mitigate against the risk. Before the latest floods, Emilia-Romagna and other areas of northern Italy were affected by a drought that reduced the land’s capacity to absorb water.
Keywords: Italy, flooding, landslides, Emilia-Romagna, climate change, weather-related disasters, evacuation, deaths.