At least 17 people have been killed in flooding prompted by a cyclone
and heavy rain that lashed the Italian island of Sardinia.
A number of people are reported missing after rivers burst their
banks, sweeping cars away and causing bridges to collapse.
The worst-hit area appears to be in and around the north-eastern city of Olbia.
Prime Minister Enrico Letta has declared a state of emergency,
speaking of a “national tragedy”.
Mr Letta announced that 20 million euros (£16.8m, $27m) would be
allocated immediately to emergency relief efforts, with soldiers
deployed in the region.
“We are focusing on essential operations: saving human lives,
assisting displaced people and clearing road access,” he said after an
emergency cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
Victims
A Brazilian family of four drowned when their basement flat in the
town of Arzachena, in the northern part of the island, filled with
water. Two children were among the dead.
Three people died when a road bridge collapsed on to their car near
Olbia, according to local media.
In a separate incident, a mother and her daughter were found dead in
their car after it was swept away by floods.
Among the victims was a police officer who died after a bridge
collapsed as he tried to escort an ambulance.
Hundreds of people across the Mediterranean island have been moved
from their homes because of the flash flooding caused by Cyclone
Cleopatra.
“We’re at maximum alert,” Giorgio Cicalo, an official from Sardinia’s
civil protection authority, told Italy’s Rai TV.
“We haven’t seen a situation as extreme as this, perhaps for decades –
especially because it’s been across the whole island.”
‘Apocalyptic’
Reports say flood waters in some areas were up to 3m (10ft) high.
Sardinian Governor Ugo Cappellacci told Italian TV that the situation
on the island was “dramatic”.
Meanwhile Olbia Mayor Gianni Giovanelli was quoted by Sky TG24 as
saying that the city had been hit by an “apocalyptic”‘ storm.
Some city residents used social media to offer shelter to those forced
out of their homes.
The BBC Weather Centre says the flooding was caused by a deep area of
low pressure that has been sitting over the Mediterranean, bringing
sustained heavy rain.
The unstable conditions are expected move across Italy and further
east, bringing further downpours and the threat of flooding,
particularly in Venice.
The storm caused extensive damage to farms in Sardinia and disrupted a
number of flights to and from mainland Italy.
Italian President Giorgio Napolitano has expressed “solidarity with
the communities involved” and “heartfelt sympathy to the families of
the many victims”. – BBC News
