The Italian government on Tuesday will release emergency funds for north-eastern regions hit by unprecedented floods that have killed 14 people, displaced tens of thousands and left thousands of hectares of farmland under water.
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The government of Giorgia Meloni, which is struggling with the necessary austerity measures, should first release at least 100 million euros in emergency aid for the disaster areas of Emilia-Romagna, a region that is considered “Italy’s orchard” and where the as yet unquantifiable damage is threatened to be recorded.
Six months of rain fell in just 36 hours last week, causing around 20 rivers to burst their banks, turning roads into mudflows and inundating large areas of farmland and many livestock farms.
These water and earth movements led to the discovery of 14 old bombs, which were disposed of by army workers.
“In the past few days we have found 14 military bombs, most of which failed to detonate, but as a precaution the army bombers detonated them all,” a local military source told AFP without being able to provide further details. What war were these bombs from? ?
The Coldiretti Farmers’ Union has issued a warning on the issue as passing tractors are likely to cause an explosion.
In addition to the loss of life, Emilia-Romagna, one of Italy’s richest regions, which alone generates almost 10% of the national GDP, has suffered economic damage that cannot be precisely quantified at this time.
According to the Confagricoltura farmers’ association, at least 10 million fruit trees will have to be uprooted, and it could be as many as 40 million.
More than 600 roads were still closed on Monday, and the region estimated at the weekend that around 620 million euros would be needed to restore the road network.
Schools in Ravenna reopened on Tuesday, but schools in the nearby town of Forli will not reopen until Wednesday as roads remain impassable.
The President of Emilia-Romagna, Stefano Bonaccini, has called for an immediate freeze on mortgage repayments, taxes and levies on families and businesses in the hardest hit areas and, in the longer term, a comprehensive plan “for the reconstruction, maintenance and security of the territory”. .
According to experts, human-induced climate change is leading to an increase and frequency of extreme weather events such as heat waves, droughts and forest fires, but also storms with heavy rainfall.