Weather: 14 people rescued in Ventimiglia. Five regions on orange alert on Friday

In Sarzana, a number of flooded underpasses have been cleared, and the municipal Civil Protection service continues to monitor river levels. The Regional Civil Protection Operations Centre continues to monitor the development of the storm and the situation across the region, in constant liaison with the local councils.

From 6 am this morning, Thursday 12 November, an orange alert has been in force for the eastern Ligurian coast (zone C) and a yellow alert for the centre of the region (zone B) and the eastern slopes of the Po Valley (zone E).

According to Arpal data, 41 mm of rain was recorded at 5.30 am in Novegigola, in the Magra catchment area. In Casale di Pignone, 33.6 mm fell in 30 minutes. In Castelnuovo Magra, 194 mm of rain was recorded over 13 hours and 226 mm over 24 hours. Overnight, wind speeds reached 70 km/h in Casoni di Suvero (Rocchetta di Vara) and 61 km/h in La Spezia. The influx of mild air from North Africa, combined with the passage of the weather front, is keeping temperatures high. This morning, temperatures are nearly 20 °C in La Spezia, 18 °C in Camogli and 17 °C in Sanremo. The Regional Operations Centre will remain open for the duration of the alert.

There are currently over 100 fire service call-outs in the province of La Spezia due to the spell of bad weather that has been affecting the area since late yesterday morning. Teams have been deployed to rescue people in distress and deal with flooding and water damage. The most serious problems are being reported in the Castelnuovo Magra area. Reinforcements have arrived from the fire service headquarters in Genoa and Savona to bolster the rescue operations.

The regional Civil Protection operations centre has issued an orange alert for central and northern Tuscany, remaining in place until the end of tomorrow. This was announced by the President of the Region, Eugenio Giani, who noted that a red alert for hydrogeological risk is currently in place until midnight today for Lunigiana, Serchio, Garfagnana, Lima and the Reno Valley, an orange alert for flood risk affecting the main river network in north-western Tuscany, and a yellow alert for severe thunderstorms across the whole of Tuscany. As regards the river situation, Giani reports that “the river basins in the areas of Versilia, Lunigiana, Garfagnana, Serchio, Lima, the Ombrone in Pistoia, the Reno Valley, the Bisenzio and the Arno” and that “Tuscany’s regional civil protection, rescue and emergency medical services system is on high alert and ready to intervene should the need arise”.

Hundreds of people have been displaced in the municipality of Massa due to bad weather. Several residents are currently cut off due to a landslide that is still active along municipal and provincial roads. The situation is preventing residents of two localities from returning to their homes. To provide immediate assistance to those affected, the Municipality of Massa has set up a reception centre at the sports hall. Also within the municipal area of Massa, work has been carried out to reinforce the embankment of the River Frigido by constructing new banks using fill soil.

In Tuscany, the ANAS has closed the Cisa State Road 62 due to a landslide at km 7.951, in the village of Caprigliola (Massa Carrara). Light vehicles are being diverted in both directions via the Caprigliola roundabout, across the Nuovo Ponte di Caprigliola bridge onto the SS 330, until they reach the village of Santo Stefano di Magra (La Spezia). For heavy goods vehicles, the diversion involves travelling from the Caprigliola roundabout along the SS 330 and then onto the SP 10, until reaching the roundabout at the Vezzano Ligure motorway junction (A15). Teams from ANAS and the police have been deployed to restore traffic flow as quickly as possible.

The President of Tuscany, Eugenio Giani, has posted on social media that “the peak flood level of the River Serchio has passed at Borgo a Mozzano, Lucca, San Giuliano Terme and Vecchiano; it is now at the first level and falling. It is currently passing through the mouth of the river” and that “other rivers in the main network are within reference levels” and there are “no critical issues along the Arno”, but “further heavy rainfall is forecast for the north-western areas in the coming hours”.

Giani also highlighted the rescue carried out yesterday in Massa by the fire brigade of a person trapped in their car in a flooded underpass, and urged people “to exercise the utmost caution and follow certain precautions: do not drive through flooded roads or underpasses, not even in a car, as even a few centimetres of water can cause you to lose control of the vehicle; avoid non-essential journeys; do not walk in flooded areas, even if the water appears shallow, as there may be open manhole covers or potholes”.

“The Civil Protection Service of the City of Venice has announced that, in view of weather forecasts indicating that north-easterly winds will strengthen on Friday 13 November, particularly along the central-southern coast, the Decentralised Operations Centre of the Veneto Region has declared a yellow alert for wind risk across the territory of the City of Venice”. This is stated in a press release issued by the City of Venice.