Flooding caused by heavy rains in Emilia-Romagna, in north-central Italy, has killed at least nine people, left many missing and thousands evacuated, leading to the cancellation of the Formula 1 Grand Prix scheduled for this weekend in the region.
“Unfortunately, the number of victims has increased,” said the deputy head of the region, Irene Priolo, in a press statement on Wednesday evening, estimating that the number of evacuees “is more than ten thousand.”
So far, the regional authorities have reported nine deaths, most of them in the regions of Forlì and Cesena.
The streets of many areas were flooded after heavy rains, and many residents found themselves trapped and forced to take refuge on the roofs of their homes, while many local roads were damaged.
According to the Minister of Civil Protection, Nilo Musumesi, 50,000 people find themselves without electricity. 48 hours”.
In Imola, where the Formula 1 Grand Prix was scheduled to take place on Sunday, the Santerno River flooded the racetracks, and the Formula 1 administration announced, on Wednesday, the cancellation of the event.
The Italian Civil Protection said that 14 rivers overflowed between Tuesday and Wednesday and 23 municipalities were flooded, calling on Twitter to take “maximum precautions”.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed her support for those affected by the floods, stressing that the government was “ready to intervene with the necessary assistance.”
It is noteworthy that Emilia-Romagna was affected two weeks ago by heavy rains that caused floods and landslides, killing two people and causing damage to agricultural land by about 300 million euros, according to the “Coldiretti” union.
