St Mark’s closed as rain lashes Italy

AFP 17TH NOVEM

BER, 2019 - Venice’s iconic St Mark’s Square was ordered closed on Sunday as the historic city suffered its third major flooding in less than a week, while rain lashing the rest of Italy prompted warnings in Florence and Pisa.

Venice’s latest “acqua alta”, or high water, hit 150 centimetres on Sunday, lower than Tuesday’s 187 centimetres -- the highest level in half a century -- but still dangerous.

“The water has stopped rising,” tweeted mayor Luigi Brugnaro, who has estimated damage so far from the invading salt water at over one billion euros (dollars).

“High of 150 centimetres... Venice is working to restart,” Brugnaro said after the sea water swamped the already devastated city where authorities have declared a state of emergency.

High tides were forecast to reach a maximum of 110 centimetres for the coming days, giving the authorities and citizens the opportunity to assess the damage as shops and Saint Mark’s Square reopened late Sunday.

To the south, Tuscany president Enrico Rossi tweeted a warning of a “flood wave” on the Arno and said boards were being installed on the swollen river’s banks in Pisa “as a precautionary measure”.

The Italian army tweeted photos of paratroopers helping to bolster river defences in Pisa, with authorities monitoring the same river in Florence after heavy rain made it rise dramatically overnight.

Flooding from the Arno devastated Renaissance jewel Florence in 1966, killing around 100 people and destroying thousands of priceless works of art.