The Emilia-Romagna region has been experiencing heavy rains and severe flooding for several days now. The provinces of Ravenna, Forlì-Cesena and Rimini are the hardest hit. Stefano Bonaccini, the regional president of Emilia-Romagna, told Italian channel La7 on Wednesday that the amount of rain that normally falls in six months has fallen in a 36-hour period. According to him, the damage amounts to “a few billion euros”.
According to local authorities, 23 rivers have overflowed their banks. In addition to the thirteen deaths, an unknown number of people are missing and more than 10,000 people have been evacuated. Due to the rainfall, many landslides also take place in the hilly area. The authorities already counted 280. As a result, 400 roads have been blocked, including some highways.
The rain has now stopped. Some precipitation is forecast for Friday and Saturday, but the water level is slowly falling and authorities expect that trend to continue. As a result, rescuers can perform their work better and better. The military and coast guard have deployed helicopters and inflatable boats to free people from their homes. The highest level of alarm still applies throughout Emilia-Romagna.
It is the second time this month that Emilia-Romagna has had bad weather. In early May, two people died during storms in the same region. The torrential rains followed months of drought, which made the soil less able to absorb the water. The same thing happened in September last year in the same region.
New course
For Minister of Civil Protection Nello Musumeci (Fratelli d’Italia), the natural disaster is a confirmation that climate change requires a new direction in water management. What has happened in Emilia-Romagna in recent days, he said, “could happen in any other part of the country”. “Nothing will be the same again, the tropics have come to Italy,” he said. “We are prepared to make a national plan to deal with heavy rainfall and long periods of drought because we need to rethink how we manage the land.”
Italy’s so-called ‘Valley of Fruits’ is located in the affected area, and the agricultural sector has been hit hard by the floods. According to farmers’ organization Coldiretti, more than 5,000 farms have been flooded, representing thousands of hectares of vineyards, orchards and fields. The mud left behind by the water can suffocate roots, affecting not only this crop, but the next as well. According to Coldiretti, the damage is therefore “incalculable”.
Ravenna
Ravenna, a city close to the Adriatic coast known for its early Christian heritage sites, has also been hit hard. Mayor Michele de Pascale said Tuesday evening that 5,000 people have already been evacuated from his city, and that a multiple of them will also have to leave their homes. “This was probably the worst night in Romagna’s history,” said Pascale. “Ravenna is unrecognizable after all the damage done.”
