Italy suffered this week from floods that were described as “the worst in a century”. The floods killed at least 14 people and left thousands homeless in relief centers. Italy received offers for international aid yesterday (Friday).
Over twenty rivers in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy overflowed and flooded dozens of towns and villages in the region. About six months’ worth of rain fell in 36 hours.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Maloney shared photos of the disaster with other G7 leaders at a summit in Japan, prompting French President Emmanuel Macron to tweet that France was “ready to provide any useful help”.
Stefano Bonacini, head of the Emilia-Romagna region, called for a national plan to mitigate the impact of natural disasters, saying: “It must not happen again.”
More than 15,000 people have been evacuated from their homes across the region as farmers survey the massive damage caused.
Over half of the evacuees spent the night in local reception centers set up in gyms or hotels. Others received hot meals from mobile kitchens deployed in several cities.
The rain caused billions of dollars worth of damage, just two weeks after the region was hit by another round of floods that left two people dead.
Formula 1 – which canceled the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix on Sunday – announced yesterday that it is donating $1.1 million to relief efforts, in line with Ferrari’s commitment.
The disaster has raised questions about why more is not being done to mitigate the effects of climate change. Experts warn that such disasters are becoming the norm due to human-induced climate change, which is exacerbating both droughts and storms. According to the environmental association Legambiente, almost seven million Italians live in flood risk areas.
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Disaster in Italy: eight dead in flash floods in the north
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