Only a week ago southern Europe was hit by heavy snowstorms, now in several regions in Italy and France, the state of emergency is again. After heavy rains hundreds of people in the north of Italy are cut off from the outside world. In southern France, two people are missing, as the fire department reported.
In the regions of Liguria and Piedmont in the Italian northwest, landslides made many roads impassable. Basements, underpasses and business premises were flooded. In Liguria, according to the regional government, 374 people were cut off from the outside world. 122 others were brought to safety. Except for parts of Liguria and Piedmont was the highest alert Red on Sunday also for the southern region of Calabria.
In Venice, the water rose again on Sunday and reached in the morning 130 centimeters above normal sea level. Just a few weeks ago, a flood of 187 centimeters had caused severe damage in the lagoon city.
Thousands without electricity
In France, too, hundreds of people had to leave their homes due to flooding, and thousands of households were without electricity. Because of the flood numerous roads were impassable, the train service was partially discontinued.
In the southern French province of Var, the authorities searched on Saturday for a woman who had fallen out of a lifeboat. The boat capsized and five inmates managed to escape. The woman did not show up again.
Policemen and firefighters were also looking for a confused 77-year-old, as the prefecture announced. The man has been missing since Saturday morning. The search in several flood-leading brooks remained unsuccessful for the time being.
In Cagnes-sur-Mer, 28 firefighters rescued a 78-year-old who had been trapped in a landslide by fallen trees. The man was taken to the hospital with hypothermia but no serious injuries. In Nice, a 39-year-old was seriously injured and hospitalized after a wave carried her away. Because of the severe weather, 1600 rescue workers were deployed.
