Red alerts, closed schools, evacuations

The streets in the regions of Tuscany and Emilia-Romania turned into the streams of mud, and the buildings were under water. Emergency teams are still trying to get to people trapped in flooded homes.

The President of Tuscany – Eugenio Giani – asked the government to recognize the state of emergency. Thanks to this, this region will receive quick financial assistance.

Local media reported that on Friday in Florence, 70 liters of rain per square meter fell in six hours, which is as much as it is usually recorded in a month. The most abundant rainfall was recorded in Vaglia – 178 l/sq m.

There are no reports of fatalities, but the services carried out many rescue actions. In Tuscany itself, over half a thousand firefighters fought with the element, who conducted 430 interventions within 24 hours.

The dramatic situation occurred in the Valley of the Siewi River, where the swollen current kidnapped the man. He was very lucky because he was noticed by firefighters going to a completely different intervention. The man was safely pulled out of the water and handed over to medical services. On Friday, the most serious call concerned a family of four from Badia Prataglia in Tuscany, which was saved from the landslide.

The increase in water level turned out to be particularly dangerous on the Arno River, flowing through Florence and Piza. The water rushed, and the fast current took everything he encountered on his way. In Pisa it was necessary to build dams, because the river quickly exceeded the level of flood threat. SIVE, which is a tributary of Arno, appeared from the banks, flooding several villages. Evacuations of hundreds of residents were necessary.

The culmination of the flood wave went through Florence on Friday evening, but the city authorities asked the residents to avoid travel at least until 2pm on Saturday. Until the evening, the wave should reach Pisa, where the water level is still growing.

The head of the Central Region of Tuscany, Eugenio Giani, appealed to residents and tourists on Friday to be careful. The authorities assured that local emergency and medical services are in the state of the highest readiness.

Due to the dangerous weather, schools were closed in 60 municipalities. Some faculties of the Florentine University are also closed.

The authorities intend to open special locks and expansion tanks to reduce the amount of water in Arno. As added, the worst downpours are already over, but you can't say the situation to normalize. Synoptics predict that the rainfall in the northern half of Italy will take its toll on Saturday, but they will not be as intense as the last day.