Florence averts disaster thanks to key floodgate
About 250 people were evacuated from their homes on Friday after the equivalent of a month's worth of rain fell in six hours, flooding streets and swelling waterways across the Tuscany region.
"The flood peak of the Arno passed without any critical issues," Tuscany's president, Eugenio Giani, wrote on social media on Saturday.
However, Giani said he would still ask the government to declare a national emergency.
Rescue teams were still responding to various critical situations in towns outside of Florence and further west towards Pisa.
A newborn baby and two elderly people were among seven people blocked in their homes by the flooding and rescued by firefighters on Saturday, Giani said.
Fire service videos taken from helicopters showed muddy, churning water flowing in the swollen Arno.
Rainfall was expected to taper off by Saturday evening.
'Made the difference'
Giani said the region's floodgate and expansion basins were "decisive" in protecting the famous Renaissance city of Florence and the surrounding areas.
"In these difficult hours, the region's hydraulic safety system has made the difference despite the intense and persistent rainfall," he said.
On Saturday morning, the level of the Arno stood at 3.87 metres and was slowly receding, Florence mayor Sara Funaro said.
The levels of all tributaries had fallen below warning levels, she added.
A red weather alert remained in place in the Florence area until midday on Saturday, with parks, cemeteries, markets, museums and libraries all closed.
In nearby areas, the red alert was extended until midnight.
The Arno, which flows through Florence and Pisa, is prone to flooding in spring and fall.
A floodgate located between the two cities, which authorities ordered opened on Friday afternoon, "literally knocked down the Arno flood wave," Giani said.
Construction of the floodgate began after a devastating flood in 1949 but was not completed in time to avert devastating flooding in 1966, when over 100 people were killed.
Firefighters have carried out 430 interventions in the provinces of Florence, Prato, Pisa and Livorno over the past 24 hours.
As of Friday evening, 248 people had been evacuated from nine different comuni, regional authorities said.
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