Much of Venice sees heavy flooding

Violent storm lashes Italy with high winds, killing 10

A violent, strengthening wind storm in Europe mangled the Italian coast on Monday, tossing yachts like toys and generating the worst storm surge flooding in a decade.

The storm, which has killed 10 people since Sunday, lashed Italy with 45-mph sustained winds. It intensified significantly as it tracked northeast into central Europe, resembling a powerful wintertime storm. In Venice, strong winds blowing onshore from the Mediterranean generated a 5-foot storm surge. The surge flooded 77 percent of Venice, according to city officials.

The water climbed above raised sidewalks that are normally put in place during high tide flooding, according to The Associated Press, and officials closed the water-bus system in the hardest-hit areas. Venetians and tourists waded through the streets in waist-high water. Police tweeted that some tourists were stranded by the rising water.

Business owners used pumps to protect their stores after door and window barriers failed to keep the water out.

At 61.4 inches, Monday’s flood was the worst in Venice in a decade, and the fifth largest on record. It ties with the December 2008 flood, when onshore winds peaked at around 45 mph. Venice’s highest water level, 76 inches, was recorded in 1966.

Sea level has been rising rapidly in Venice — at a rate faster than other parts of the world — in part because the city itself is sinking.