Chiavari, a seaside town on the Italian Riviera, has been hit by flash flooding after 126mm of rain fell, with the area under a severe red thunderstorm warning. Roads have turned into rivers, and residents have been seen sweeping thick mud from the streets.
Red warning covers Liguria
The red warning boundary covers a large section of the Liguria region, including Chiavari, Genoa, Arenzano — just west of Genoa — and extends east toward La Spezia. The warning was issued by the Italian Air Force National Meteorological Service.
A spokesperson for the service said: "BE PREPARED. Take precautions and keep up to date with the latest weather forecast. Expect some disruption to daily routines and BE PREPARED for disruption to outdoor activities."
Warnings upgraded and roads closed
An urgent yellow flood warning was issued on Thursday for the wider Liguria region, including Genoa and Chiavari. It was subsequently upgraded to orange for north-eastern Liguria and the eastern slopes of the Po Valley.
In Genoa, 25 miles east of Chiavari, 20,000 lightning strikes were reported. The risk of flooding is set to continue through Friday until around 3pm local time. The torrential rain has forced the closure of the Aurelia motorway in the Savona area of northwest Liguria.
Evacuations and power cuts across Italy
The region's environmental protection agency, Arpal, said: "Several storm cells developed within a line of instability that crossed our region. These were small but particularly intense phenomena, which originated at sea and moved inland, eventually causing localized flooding."
Elsewhere in Italy, a campsite with 250 tourists was evacuated in the Brembana Valley in the northern Lombardy region due to flash floods on Thursday. A two-metre-high torrent of mud and debris swept down the valley from Malga Bedole in Val Genova, in Trentino, a mountainous region of northern Italy.
In Tuscany, around 6,000 households lost power, including over 2,000 in the historic medieval art city of Pistoia. Meanwhile, 81 people in Brescia, Italy's Lombardy region, were evacuated.
