Venice, the tide stops at “only” 150 centimetres
Environment — di Rudi Bressa
New tide peak in Venice at 13:00. 110 centimetres forecast in the coming days. Difficult to quantify the damage.
Venice, the tide stops at “only” 150 centimetres
New tide peak in Venice at 13:00. 110 centimetres forecast in the coming days. Difficult to quantify the damage.
Another day of "acqua granda" in Venice, caused in part by the sirocco winds that lashed the lagoon. The high-tide peak at 13:00 stopped at "only" 150 centimetres, flooding just over 70 per cent of the city. St Mark's Square was closed for safety reasons. High water is still expected later in the week, but levels should be lower, around 110 centimetres.
High water in Venice again
It has been a truly historic week for the lagoon city. After the record reached on the evening and night between last Tuesday and Wednesday, a succession of exceptional tidal events followed throughout the rest of the week, up to today's.
"Venice and Venetians have always done their best in the darkest times, and this time too we will rise again, all together," the mayor Luigi Brugnaro declared this morning in a live address from St Mark's Square. "Let us start again from Venice to study the effects of climate change across the world".
@vvfveneto @DPCgov #AcquaAlta | #Venezia e i veneziani nei periodi più bui hanno fatto le cose migliori e anche questa volta tutti uniti ci rialzeremo. Ripartiamo da #Venezia per studiare gli effetti dei cambiamenti climatici in tutto il mondo. @raiuno #domenicain #maravenier
Yet another appeal from the mayor, coming just days after the news that went around the world, passing through CNN, The Guardian and the Independent: shortly after the vote against the amendments put forward by the opposition to tackle climate change, the council chamber was flooded. Like a modern-day Cassandra.
The damage in Venice
The damage is enormous. Mayor Brugnaro himself speaks of one billion euros, though making estimates is far from straightforward, as much of the damage will only become apparent over time. As things stand, it appears the government will provide up to 5,000 euros for private individuals and that mortgages have been "frozen" for at least a year. But the damage is not limited to the city alone. The entire coastline was battered, to the point of swallowing up kilometres of beaches along the best-known tourist resorts in the Venice area.