Beginning of winter: snow and floods in Italy

It even snowed in Sicily: the unusually cold temperatures caused heavy snowfall in large parts of Italy. On the Adriatic coast, residents are being evacuated due to flooding.

When mild temperatures prevail at this time of year, the onset of winter brings snowy mayhem, floods, and sleet. Bad weather in Italy led to flooding on the Adriatic coast, and heavy snowfall paralyzed traffic.

Snow falls all over the country

In the southernmost regions of Puglia and Basilicata, heavy snow fell at the beginning of the week. Schools have been closed in many places for safety reasons. Some snow also fell in the Sicilian province of Syracuse. A new record temperature of 48.8°C was measured here in the summer.

Heavy snowfall also caused traffic chaos in central Italy: in Perugia, the capital of the Umbria region, a number of roads were closed because they could not be cleared to begin with. According to the ANSA news agency, the snow masses in the Valmarechia Valley reached two meters in height. The authorities warned of avalanches. Snow is also expected in the South Tyrol ski area in northern Italy.

Floods on the Adriatic coast

Heavy rains led to floods on the Adriatic coast. The Civil Protection issued the second highest level of alert for the regions of Emilia-Romagna and Marche. In and around the town of Senigallia, where 12 people died in fall storms, authorities told residents to go to the upper floors.

Also on the island of Ischia, the authorities warned people of flooding and asked about 400 residents to leave their homes. Twelve people died here in landslides at the end of November.

Flood in Venice

Floods of up to 125 cm are expected in Venice. In order to protect the city center and San Marco Square, all the flood protection gates in front of the city have already been extended.

Ferries from Sicily and Calabria to the Aeolian Islands are now running again after being suspended for more than 40 hours due to bad weather. The village of Ginostra on the volcanic island of Stromboli was initially cut off from the outside world.