Home Tags Posts tagged with "flood"
flood
France and Italy are on flood alert as heavy rain brings chaos to parts of Europe.
Hundreds of people were forced to evacuate their homes in the Italian city of Pisa as the Arno River threatened to burst its banks on Friday.
High seas are expected to cause widespread flooding along France’s Atlantic coast.
Meanwhile, deep snow drifts left dozens of people stranded in Serbia.
Hundreds of people were forced to evacuate their homes in the Italian city of Pisa as the Arno River threatened to burst its banks
Local officials declared a state of emergency and deployed rescue teams to help travelers trapped in their vehicles. Snow storms and strong winds have been sweeping across Eastern Europe.
Italian media said a stretch of medieval wall measuring about 95ft in the town of Volterra, in the province of Pisa, collapsed as a result of heavy rain.
The French department of Finistere, in the west of the country, was placed on red alert as forecasters warned of huge waves and extensive flooding. Ten other French departments were also on alert for rising water levels.
At least two people died and scores had to be airlifted to safety after floods hit south-eastern France earlier this month.
Severe storms have been battering Europe for much of January.
[youtube sJ-aDXyuy5k 650]
At least 28 people were killed, nine are missing and some 80,000 homeless since flooding and landslides hit central Vietnam on Friday.
Lives were lost across five provinces, according to the National Flood and Storm Control Agency, quoted by the Associated Press.
In Quang Ngai province, flood waters reportedly rose above a previous peak recorded in 1999.
A tropical depression has dumped rain on the country.
In Quang Ngai province, flood waters reportedly rose above a previous peak recorded in 1999
Earlier in the week, at least 13 people died and 81 were injured when Tropical Storm Haiyan made landfall in north Vietnam after wreaking havoc in the Philippines.
There has been disruption to the coffee harvest and bean drying in Vietnam’s central highland provinces, Reuters news agency reports.
Vietnam is the world’s top robusta coffee producer, accounting for around 17% of the world’s output.
Flood waters have started to recede in some areas, allowing residents to return and begin digging out their homes, officials said.
Binh Dinh Province reported the highest number of deaths, followed by Quang Ngai, the official Thanh Nien (Young People) newspaper reports.
Some 100,000 houses were submerged and roads were closed and some national train services cancelled.
Flood waters rose quickly after 15 hydro power plants opened their sluice gates as a safety measure.
Earlier reports on the flooding gave a slightly higher estimate for deaths.
[youtube zR2P43Qk8rw 650]
Venice flood barriers – designed to protect the Italian city from flooding during high tides – have been successfully tested for the first time.
Four large floodgates rose out of the water creating a temporary sea barrier.
Once completed, 78 mobile flood barriers will be raised from the seabed to shut off the lagoon in the event of rising sea levels and winter storms.
Venice suffers flooding on a yearly basis. In 1966, 80% of the city was flooded by high tides.
Construction on the barriers began 10 years ago but has been hampered by delays in funding due to Italy’s economic crisis.
Four large floodgates rose out of the water creating a temporary sea barrier
The Moses project has already cost more than $7 billion and is not expected to be completed for another two years.
Once finished, the floodgates will extend more than a mile, blocking the three inlets to the lagoon.
A government minister has promised funds to complete the scheme on time in 2016.
But the head of the construction consortium said they would need $800 million immediately, otherwise the jobs of some 4,000 construction workers would be at risk.
In 1966, some 5,000 people were left homeless when flood levels in the city reached 6ft causing immense damage.
Earlier this week, Venice saw its first high tide of the season, known as “acqua alta”.
[youtube dBQ0ATYBAn0]
Greek capital Athens has been hit by heavy rain and a thunderstorm for several hours, leaving flooded roads and homes, causing traffic jams and disrupting the train and tram network, officials say.
The deluge inundated basements and forced authorities to close underpasses and a central subway station.
The fire department said it had received at least 600 calls to drain water from houses and businesses.
Many of the city’s streets remain ankle-deep in water.
Greek capital Athens has been hit by heavy rain and a thunderstorm for several hours, leaving flooded roads and homes, causing traffic jams and disrupting the train and tram network
“It was one of the worst thunderstorms we have ever had in the greater Athens area [since 1961],” fire department chief Sotiris Georgakopoulos told NET state television.
At one point the rainfall was so intense that parked cars were swept away by racing waters.
“There are cars immobilized on several Athens highways and we have dispatched tow trucks to clear the roads,” senior traffic police officer Dimitris Papanagiotou told NET.
Fire chiefs say that they have about 60 crews tackling the floods which they expect to recede throughout Friday.
No injuries have been reported.
[youtube U5KE7wM0vcM]
