Floods and roads like rivers: orange alert in 5 regions for bad weather

Real hurricanes are also expected today in southern Sicily, Calabria and Salento, but also over the Alto Adriatic, in Emilia and between Rome and Naples; In the afternoon, in addition to these areas, a further worsening is expected from Emilia Romagna towards Lombardy and Piedmont.

On Sunday 20 October, the cyclone will slowly move southwards: in the morning, the low pressure centre will be positioned around Sicily and will cause heavy rainfall over the Western Alps, eastern Sardinia, Sicily, Ionian Calabria, Basilicata and Apulia, with a focus on the Metaponto and the Gulf of Taranto.

With this cyclone, we will also have strong winds and sea storms especially over the Ionian Calabria, the expected epicentre of this phase of extreme bad weather. The beginning of the week will also be characterised by this difficult situation in the South: extensive flooding, violent phenomena and sea storms are feared especially over Calabria and Sicily until Tuesday, "but we will have to monitor the situation carefully: the trajectory of these 'Mediterranean cyclones' is rather difficult to decipher with precision," warns the meteorologist.

In the last few days, rainfall of around 300 mm has been recorded in Liguria in just a few hours, and even on Thursday night in Tuscany near Piombino 120 mm fell in just one hour (120 litres per square metre): 'These numbers are tropical, not Mediterranean climate, and represent further confirmation of the climate change underway. In a few years, even in Italy,' Gussoni comments, 'we will feel like we are in Bangkok, we will leave home in October with the sun, a lot of sultriness and 30°C and, after 10 minutes, we will find ourselves under monsoon rain and flash floods'.

The Minister for Civil Protection Nello Musumeci has signed the decree establishing a state of extraordinary mobilisation of the national civil protection service in support of the Emilia Romagna region. The measure accepts the request made in recent hours by the regional government, in relation to the wave of bad weather that is affecting those territories. "Some municipalities," said Irene Priolo, acting president of the Emilia-Romagna Region, "are carrying out preventive evacuations, and it is only right that they do so, also because the floods will occur tonight, so in anticipation the mayors are putting their citizens in protection. We are seeing the dramatic images from Sicily, the maximum solidarity from the Emilia-Romagna Region,' Priolo added.

Since the morning, 'almost 70 millimetres of rain have fallen in Cesenatico. A very high quantity in just a few hours that is putting part of the sewer network and the subways of Viale Trento and Torino in crisis, which are impassable during the most critical moments of the rainfall". Taking stock of the situation, on his Facebook profile, is the mayor of the Romagna town, Matteo Gozzoli, according to whom "to allow a more rapid outflow of the water accumulated inland, the Vinci gates will be open from 3.30 p.m. and closed again at 8 p.m. this evening until 11 a.m. tomorrow morning, as a strengthening of the wind and waves is forecast for the night". On the municipal territory, he argues, "among the major criticalities, in addition to the roads with flooding, I would like to point out the fall of a large pine tree in Viale Carducci near the intersection with Via Milano. Cesenatico Servizi technicians are at work," Gozzoli concludes, "as well as the local police, public works and civil protection technicians, and the fire brigade.

Following an update with the Ravenna Prefecture's Relief Coordination Centre, it was highlighted that the rainfall forecast so far has affected the plains more than the hills, so the rivers flowing in the municipality of Ravenna should settle between thresholds 1 and 2 without causing any particular concern. The heavy rainfall, on the other hand, has generated critical situations in some streets and roundabouts, including the entrance to the Sapir terminal in the port area, which have led to the closure of the exits from State Road 67 Classicana towards the San Vitale Dockyard. In addition, the crossings of some consortium canals are being closely monitored. The Lama drain has reached a level for which the closure of Via Trieste and Via Stradone at the height of the bridges over the drain has been ordered, with diversion signals in place. Due to flooding in some museums, the closure of all museum sites has been ordered for this afternoon, tomorrow and Monday.

The Veneto Region's decentralised Functional Centre for Civil Protection has issued an update to the hydrogeological and hydraulic criticality warning, declaring a state of pre-alert (orange alert) for hydrogeological and hydraulic criticality, with rising levels in the secondary hydrographic network and possible flooding of the surrounding areas, for the following basins: Upper Brenta-Bacchiglione-Alpone; Po, Fissero-Tartaro-CanalBianco and Lower Adige; Lower Brenta-Bacchiglione. For the Adige-Garda and Monti Lessini basin, the attention phase for hydraulic criticality (yellow alert) is declared, while the hydrogeological criticality is orange. Specifically, for the Adige river the hydraulic criticality is yellow, that for the Po river is yellow until 12 noon on 20 October, then it will be orange. Finally, for the Livenza, Lemene and Tagliamento basin, the warning is yellow for both hydrogeological and hydraulic criticality. The warning is valid from 2 p.m. today until 2 p.m. tomorrow, 20 October.

The rain arrives in Catania and the streets that criss-cross the city, from north to south, turn into rivers fed also by rainwater coming from Etna. Like Via Etnea, which is a flooded river, with water above the pavements and a scooter floating and 'travelling' towards Piazza Duomo. Just behind it is its owner, wearing a helmet, who is carried away by the water and is rescued by some passers-by. The scene was filmed by several people and the videos went viral on social media. A car was also carried away by the water and 'climbed' onto the metal posts that line the 'fish market' near Piazza Duomo.

There are currently seven flights that have been diverted from the Falcone Borsellino airport due to the storm that caused flooding in the passenger terminal and baggage area. Ryanair flights from Berlin and Paris have been diverted to Lamezia Terme. Swiss from Zurich and Easy Jet from Geneva have been diverted to Catania. On Trapani, Ryanair flights from Turin and Dat from Lampedusa.

The Ravone torrent in Bologna's southern area floods. The mayor Matteo Lepore on social media urges all citizens of the via Saffi and Ravone area to immediately go upstairs and stay at home with their phones. 'In these minutes,' the first citizen writes, 'the Ravone torrent has exceeded alarm levels and is flowing out in some places. Several roads in this area are closed. Do not drive." The water level of the Ravone, according to Arpae data updated in real time, rose in an hour - between 7 and 8 p.m. - by a good two metres, exceeding the criticality threshold 3, the red one.

Following the rainfall of the last few hours "as a precautionary measure, since the floods are expected to pass tonight, a total evacuation of the areas already affected by the previous waves of bad weather in our territory is ordered: Traversara, Borghetto and the area of via Muraglione in Boncellino". This is what the Municipality of Bagnacavallo, in the Ravenna area, one of the towns worst hit by the recent flooding events, announced on its Facebook page. "The rainfall," it says, "will be widespread and persistent, even in the form of showers, mainly in the plain areas, with rising hydrometric levels also in the Lamone basin. From 2pm, it is highlighted, a reception centre will be active at the Bagnacavallo primary school gymnasium and a shuttle service will be available for those who need to reach Bagnacavallo from Traversara between 3.30pm and 5pm.

From red to orange, as of midnight, the alert for hydraulic criticality, i.e. for the state of the rivers, in Emilia-Romagna. The measure - ordered by Arpae and the Civil Protection - concerns the entire regional territory with the exception of the mountainous area where the alert is yellow.

The fire brigade, using a helicopter, managed to rescue a man who had climbed onto the roof of a house in Licata, where the Salso river flooded due to the bad weather, at kilometre 231 of the state road 115, near a petrol station. A fireman descended from the helicopter and harnessed and hoisted the man to safety.

In Licata, it was feared that there was a missing person due to the bad weather, but fortunately the person has been found. Several fire brigade teams from the Gela detachment are working in the Africano district, which is all flooded. The mayor of Licata (Agrigento) Angelo Balsamo, after the flooding of the Salso river, urged citizens to "stay at home" if "not strictly necessary, to allow rescuers to be able to work where they are needed". There have been several interventions so far and houses evacuated, especially in the 'African quarter', near the river.