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Two die as rain, snowstorms sweep across Italy
Rome (AFP) Dec 11, 2008 Storms across Italy claimed two lives, caused massive disruption throughout the country and persuaded trade unionists to soften a planned nationwide strike, Italian media reported Thursday. On the outskirts of Rome, a woman drowned in her car after being trapped in an underpass flooded by the torrential rains overnight Wednesday, the ANSA news agency reported. Firemen recovered the woman's body early Thursday from the underpass in Rome, where many streets were flooded or blocked by fallen trees, causing traffic chaos, said the agency. More rain had fallen on Rome in a single night than the average total for December rainfall, said the meteorological observatory. Mayor Gianni Alemanno called for a natural disaster to be declared in the capital and urged residents to limit their movements as much as possible. A nationwide strike public service called by the left-wing General Confederation of Italian Workers (CGIL) will go ahead as planned Friday. But in recognition of the extreme conditions, organisers called off transport strikes in Rome and Venice. Workers in vital public services would stay at their posts, the union said. On Thursday in Reggio di Calabria, the southern tip of Italy, a 76-year-old man died of a heart attack after a tree branch fell on to his car. Civil defence services said heavy rain, strong winds and snowfall had caused serious damage since Tuesday and were expected to continue through Thursday. Emergency services responded to hundreds of calls from residents trapped in their cars or homes by the flooding, and dozens of specialists were drafted in from neighbouring regions as reinforcements, the ANSA agency reported. Residents living near the River Tiber in Rome were on alert in case the river's banks burst, while some people in Ostia, southwest of the capital, were due to be evacuated from their homes. Rail traffic in the region was also affected. Venice suffered serious flooding for the second time in two weeks, with the waters reaching 1.05 metres (five foot nine inches) Thursday morning. Last week, the "acqua alta" (high water) reached 1.56 metres (five feet, two inches), the highest level since 1986, before falling back again. On Thursday, with the city's world-famous St Mark's Square once again underwater, the waters were expected to rise as high as 1.30 metres at high tide towards 10:30 pm (2130 GMT), ANSA reported. The whole country was affected, from the mountainous Trentino-Alto Adige region of the north, where schools were closed and many roads blocked by deep snow, to Sicily in the south. On Wednesday, heavy snows in the north disrupted flights serving a Milan airport. Share This Article With Planet Earth
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Six dead in Venezuela rainstorms
Caracas (AFP) Nov 21, 2008At least six people died in Venezuela after hours of torrential rain that set off landslides and flooding, damaged buildings and brought traffic to a halt, officials said Friday. |
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