Rome: At least eight people have died and thousands have been evacuated as torrential rains battered northern Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region, triggering widespread floods, officials say.
Wednesday’s flooding caused the cancellation of the Formula One Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, which had been due to take place on Sunday in Imola.
Civil Protection Minister Nello Musumeci said some areas had received half their average annual rainfall in 36 hours, causing rivers to burst their banks, sending water cascading through towns and submerging thousands of hectares of farmland.
Musumeci said about 50,000 people were without electricity.
Eight bodies have been retrieved around the flood zone, the vice president of Emilia-Romagna, Irene Priolo, told reporters, adding that the rains were easing but river levels were still rising.
“The city is on its knees, devastated and in pain,” said Gian Luca Zattini, the mayor of Forli, a city near Bologna where three people have died. “It’s the end of the world.” –Agencies
