More severe weather is affecting parts of northern Italy, with snowfall and avalanches in mountainous areas and flooding rivers in Emilia-Romagna Region and neighbouring Tuscany. Italy’s fire service Vigili del Fuoco said it had carried out 8,000 interventions during the past week due to bad weather, including 500 in 36 hours to 18 November in Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany.

Emilia Romagna Region
In Emilia Romagna region the Idice River broke its banks in the municipality of Budrio, Bologna Province, on 17 November. Around 300 people were evacuated. Local media reported that over 100 livestock in the area have drowned. Civil protection is working to repair a dyke on the river that broke on 18 November. Several roads have been closed in the area.
The Idice River at Castenaso peaked at about 11.5 metres on 17 November. Major flood stage here is 11 metres. Levels have since fallen to below 7 metres.
In San Martino in Argine the Idice peaked just under major flood stage (13.3 metres) on 17 November, reaching around 13.2 metres.



Tuscany Region
Severe weather, including strong winds, heavy rain and flooding affected areas in neighbouring Tuscany region from 16 November, prompting authorities to declare a state of emergency. A tornado was reported in Grosseto Province.
Thirteen people were rescued by helicopter after becoming stranded in floods in the municipality of San Gimignano, Siena Province.
The rising Arno river caused flood concerns in the tourist cities of Pisa and Florence. Bridges and roads were closed in advance. Some flooding from the Arno was reported in Pontassieve, prompting some evacuations.
Around 500 people were put under evacuation orders in Cecina in Livorno province, due to the threat of flooding from the Cecina river.
Venice and the North
Meanwhile Venice is still experiencing serious problems after three of the highest tides on record caused major flooding the historic city in the past week.
Other parts of the country have also seen severe weather including heavy snowfall and avalanches in the South Tyrol Region, which left areas inaccessible.
Italy’s northern neighbour Austria has also seen similar severe weather. Floods and landslides over the last few days have left at least 1 person dead, 2 injured and dozens evacuated.
Social Media
#Maltempo #Toscana #Siena 19:15, soccorse dall'elicottero dei #vigilidelfuoco 6 persone in loc. Brenna a #Sovicille; a #SanGimignano in loc. Ulignano recuperate 16 persone rifugiate ai piani alti di un edificio #salvataggiquotidiani pic.twitter.com/7zygua0fpY
— Vigili del Fuoco (@emergenzavvf) November 17, 2019
#Maltempo #Modena #18novembre 11:00, #vigilidelfuoco impegnati a Finale Emilia dove un canale ha rotto gli argini, allagate le campagne circostanti e alcuni insediamenti rurali. Ricognizione aerea con l’elicottero DragoVF pic.twitter.com/WoFLJNI1ot
— Vigili del Fuoco (@emergenzavvf) November 18, 2019
#Maltempo #EmiliaRomagna #Bologna #17novembre, senza sosta il lavoro dei #vigilidelfuoco in tutta la provincia di #Bologna per allagamenti diffusi. Nella clip il sorvolo dell'elicottero Drago sulla zona di Budrio pic.twitter.com/ORpCmOOHoU
— Vigili del Fuoco (@emergenzavvf) November 17, 2019
#Maltempo #EmiliaRomagna #Bologna 13:45, salvati dalla piena del fiume Idice una coppia di coniugi tra i comuni di Budrio e Castenaso: nella clip il recupero effettuato dall'elicottero Drago dei #vigilidelfuoco pic.twitter.com/lqEChjRFvK
— Vigili del Fuoco (@emergenzavvf) November 17, 2019
Lo so, fa impressione. Il picco sarà nel pomeriggio, ma ci assicurano sarà al di sotto dei 5 mt. che sono il secondo livello di guardia. Tutta questa acqua, con la pressione che fa, crea disagi a fognature e caditoie, con possibili allagamenti.#arno #allertameteoTOS pic.twitter.com/g5TrQ9629v
— Cristina Giachi (@CGiachi) November 17, 2019