Rapid river flooding devastates Sicily, kills at least 12
Following deadly storms in northern Italy and coastal flooding in Venice, an overflowing river in the small town of Casteldaccia on the island of Sicily has lead to the deaths of at least a dozen people.
The river reportedly rose very rapidly on Saturday night, trapping two families in a home and killing nine of the 12 inhabitants. A one-year-old baby and three-year-old child are among the dead.
According to the Associated Press (AP), state radio reported that one man survived the flooding by clinging to a tree and was able to use his cellphone to call for help from there.
He had just stepped outside to walk the family dogs when the floodwaters struck.
Neighbors described their homes filling with water that night as well, and the narrow escape they made even though the “water was up to the hood of the car.”
Another confirmed death is that of a man whose car was swept away by the flood waters. Two others that died were also swept away in their vehicles.
The mayor of Casteldaccia, Giovanni Di Giacinto, described to the BBC how the local river, Milicia, has never before flooded the town. He claims that it was small and never had much water.
A general view shows a partially submerged house, where according to local media nine people died in, due to the flood-affected river Milicia, in Casteldaccia, near Palermo, Italy, November 4, 2018. (REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane)
"It has never presented a threat to Casteldaccia, and it wasn't a very rainy day, anyway," he said.
In Agrigento province, 14 people at a hotel in Montevago were rescued by firefighters as the Belice River rose, the AP stated.
In mountainous areas, rainfall and runoff can take many hours or even days to fill area rivers before the water flushes towards the sea, impacting coastal communities such as Casteldaccia.
"A line of heavy thunderstorms marched across the region on Saturday that led to some places receiving 25-40 mm (1-1.5 inches) of rain," according to AccuWeather Meteorologist Tyler Roys.
The nearby city of Palermo recorded 33 mm (1.3 inches) of rainfall that day. Heavy rain - upwards of 22 mm (0.85 of an inches) - fell on both Friday and Saturday, as well.
According to the AP, two other people are missing due to flooding near Sicily, as well after flood waters swept away a pair of cars.
"The good news is that any threat for rain will go down as we move into the week. The region will be largely dry this week, with the exceptions of a few showers along the northern coast," Roys said.
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