Storms and heavy downpours that wreaked havoc and destruction in Italy claimed the lives of at least thirty people. As rivers overflowed owing to extreme floodwaters, the bodies of a local family including two infants and a teenager were washed ashore the coast of Casteldaccia. The weekend home where the family was staying lay covered in water and mud. Three from the family survived.
The widespread damage caused in and around Casteldaccia raised a lot of questions over the quality of constructions in the town. Local officials decided to conduct a probe to identify deviations from construction norms and compliance regulations that might have compromised the inhabitants’ safety.
Another fatality involved a man in his mid forties driving near Vicari in Palermo, on his way to a service station to help a fellow worker. While the man was found dead in the car, his twenty year old co-passenger went missing.
Searches were also underway for a forty year old doctor who was on his way to the hospital in Corleone. Rescue workers found the man’s car left unattended near the town.
Torrential storms in the region of Astringent were intense enough to wash away a rental car that was being used by a man and a woman.
Most of the lives were claimed by violent winds and heavy downpour. Casualties included a senior citizen of German origin who was struck by lightning while vacationing in Sardinia.
The storms put six regions on high alert. Hundreds of thousands of hectares of vegetation were wiped away from the country’s forested regions. Overall damages in the country were estimated at $45.5 billion. The monetary implications of the disaster only worsened Italy’s economic situation as the country struggles to cope with a huge budget deficit.
Venice, the country’s canal city and a major tourist destination was one of the most severely hit regions in the country, along with Portfolio, Sicily and Palermo.
Blocked roads, closed schools and institutions and disruption to public utility services were widespread. Troops were mobilized to take stock of the situation, one of the worst natural catastrophes to have hit the Mediterranean country in more than half a century.