Thirteen dead, settlements flooded, crops destroyed: Emilia-Romagna, rich region ItalyThe country’s “arboretum” measures the damage caused by floods of rare intensity, which, according to authorities and experts, indicates the transformation of the Mediterranean climate into “tropical”.

About twenty rivers and streams overflowed their banks and flooded the plains of the region with a population of 4.5 million, which is especially appreciated by tourists who visit historic cities such as Parma and Ravenna, their green landscapes, taste their gastronomy or go to the beaches . Adriatic.

Italian media reported that 13 people were killed, although the number was not confirmed by authorities last night.

More than 10,000 residents were forced to leave their homes.

All of Italy is experiencing a rainy and humid May, but in recent days, Emilia-Romagna has experienced incredible bad weather: huge agricultural holdings drowned, submerged under water and mud, grain and fruit fields were devastated, pastures were lost, villages were swept away by mudflows, bridges collapsed, more than 400 roads were flooded .

In some places, the rains fell in a few hours, which under normal conditions is fixed for as much as half a year.

The damage is estimated at several billion euros – on top of what was estimated to have reached two billion euros from similar events earlier this month.

“Five thousand agricultural holdings were under water,” summed up the local departments.

The price of disasters is high

Ravenna Mayor Michele de Pascal said yesterday that in some communities that were evacuated, residents were able to return to their homes, but in others, people were forced to leave their homes as embankments and other works holding back water were threatened. give way or break.

President of the Emilia-Romagna region Stefano Bonacini yesterday compared the scale and consequences of the disaster with the earthquake that hit his region on May 20, 2012, when the cost of damage was estimated at more than 10 billion euros.

Climate change to “tropical”

In areas where the water has receded, residents are trying to clear houses and streets filled with mud and rubbish.

In the city of Lugo, Andrea Ancherani shows traces of dirt in his apartment, where the flood broke. “No one here remembers having encountered something like this. It was very hard last night, but today we are here, working and waiting for someone to come and clean the streets.”

Authorities and experts warn that such catastrophes will become the norm. “Nothing will be the same again, because the transformation of the climate to the tropics, which has already been observed in Africa, is also affecting Italy,” Civil Protection Minister Nello Muzzumecchi warned.

Surprisingly, the May flood hit a country facing chronic drought. So it is not possible to replenish water resources that have been declining due to thinning snow in the mountains and a decrease in average rainfall, experts warn.

According to scientists, anthropogenic climate change is increasing the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events such as extreme heat, droughts, wildfires, and extreme precipitation.

The flood caused the cancellation of the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Emilia-Romagna, which was supposed to take place in Imola on Sunday.

^{Source: APE-MEB, AFP.}