Video | In Romagna "more rain than 2023":500 firefighters intervened in 24 hours

The Senio also flooded at Castel Bolognese and Cotignola.The most critical situation in the Ravenna area, helicopters also in action.Priolo:"Bad weather running out"

by Andrea Mari, Mirko Billi, Angela Sannai

BOLOGNA - In the last 24 hours there have been "over 500" interventions by the firefighters in Emilia-Romagna to deal with the damage caused by the intense wave of bad weather that is hitting the region.The firefighters themselves let it be known.

The most critical situation concerns the province of Ravenna, where “two are also in action Dragon helicopters to evacuate people stuck in their homes due to the rising water level caused by the flooding of the Senio stream in Cotignola and del Lamone a Bagnacavallo, in the Traversara area".TO Casola Valsenio However, interventions are underway for various landslides that have blocked connecting roads.In the province of Forlì-Cesena "the aquatic rescuers of the National Corps operated in via Zignola, in Forlì, to evacuate 14 people, including seven disabled people in a healthcare residence, and a hundred animals threatened by the water".Finally, again in Forlì, in the San Benedetto district, in via Pelacano and in via Isonzo "teams are working to assist people in difficulty due to flooding and to rescue motorists who have broken down".

THE SENIUM FLOODED IN CASTEL BOLOGNESE AND COTIGNOLA:“EVACUATE OR GO TO HIGH FLOORS”

The Senio, which flooded tonight at Castel Bolognese and others Cotignola, since the early hours of this morning it has been flowing together with the waters of other watercourses in the Cer- Emilia-Romagna channel, from which this morning around 7.30 he is leaving.For this reason, the Municipality of Cotignola has warned all those who live less than 100 meters from the canal to go up to the upper floors or, if the roads are passable, to evacuate immediately.Anyone who doesn't have a suitable place at their disposal and finds themselves traveling along roads that are still passable will be able to find welcome at the Brainstorm club in Fusignanor (Piazza Arcangelo Corelli 14, Fusignano), al PalaLumagni of Lugo (Via Lumagni, Lugo) or al Alfonsine school complex, via Murri 26.The situation in the nine municipalities of Lower Romagna (Alfonsine, Bagnacavallo, Bagnara di Romagna, Conselice, Cotignola, Fusignano, Lugo, Massa Lombarda) is reported by the Union as "critical, albeit in a heterogeneous manner".

PRIOLO:“BAD WEATHER ENDING OUT, BUT ALSO MORE RAIN THAN 2023“

The wave of bad weather in Emilia-Romagna is "wearing off, but we have to wait for the floods to pass".He says it thereacting president of Emilia-Romagna, Irene Priolo, taking stock of the bad weather situation this morning on Rai Radio 1.“I must say that it rained continuously for more than 48 hours. Boris chose our region”.So a critical event, but “in the process of easing.It continues to rain a little but it is not these 10 millimeters that can lead to significant increases."

Priolo however confirms that the rains were higher than expected, in some areas even more rain fell than in May 2023.“The first models spoke of an accumulation of 130 millimetres, in reality for example in the Senio basin we are having accumulations of 250 millimetres, therefore comparable if not in some cases even higher than that of 16-17 May 2023.A very significant event but large urban centers were not affected, while last year we had the interest of Cesena, Forlì and a very important part of Faenza".
In these hours, explains the number one from viale Aldo Moro during the connection, "we are managing the flood peaks which are all going downstream and have caused some damage.I understand that the population is very alert, after the event a year ago there is a lot of concern and we have had some problems. I must say that last year we displaced 45,000 people, this time the event is important but we are talking about a thousand citizens” outside their homes.

“SON SAY YES TO EXPANSION CASES”

“We need the new expansion banks that we are including in the special plans to be financed.Because otherwise the flow of the rivers is this."In the midst of the emergency, the president of Emilia-Romagna Irene Priolo sends a clear message:to avoid similar events in the future it is necessary to accelerate the works planned after last year's flood.“Veneto saved from expansion tanks?This also happened in Emilia-Romagna”, replies Priolo, this morning on Rai Radio 1.At the moment, Priolo underlines, “we are also having floods in the Modena area where we have the expansion tanks.'Cassa Senio', in this event, was not even filled because the peak of the flood was not upstream but downstream, under the box".
In any case, recalls the acting president (in office since the resignation of Stefano Bonaccini) with responsibility for Civil Protection, "we after the 2023 event we have identified new cases with special plans that need to be created.We are waiting for the commissioner to approve special plans which we have already validated as a Region in July.It's been a while."This is a 4.5 billion euro plan where various interventions are planned to improve the safety of the territory, including the construction of new expansion tanks.So far, however, the money managed by commissioner Francesco Paolo Figliuolo has been used "to repair the damage, not to carry out these works which are fundamental for our region".Priolo, during the radio call, however denies that what has been done in the last year has been useless for the purposes of prevention.“We are having some overflows but the banks are still holding up, this is the case of Boncellino (in the Ravenna area, on the Lamone, ed.) where the overflows have been continuing since 2-3 am this night.The flood peaks have all moved downstream.We have no problems upstream and across the Via Emilia, as happened last year.They are the heaps that are accumulating one after the other", highlights Priolo again.