Italy: Floods in northern region leaves 14 dead, PM Giorgia Meloni visits affected areas

As Italy recovers from floods that have left at least 14 dead and thousands displaced to evacuation centers, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has visited hard-hit flood-hit areas in the north of the country, cutting short her visit to Japan for the G7 summit.

Meloni visited the Emilia-Romagna region, which has been extremely vulnerable to flooding and more than 36,000 people have been evacuated. According to the Department of Civil Protection, more than 20 river banks were flooded and caused 280 landslides in the region.

The floods have left about 27,000 people without power, and evacuees are spending nights in local shelters set up in hotels and gyms, where people are served meals in mobile kitchens spread across the city. “I am deeply grateful to the men and women who joined the rescue operations during these hours to help the population affected by the severe weather and risked their own lives to save the lives of others. Thanks for your amazing work," the Italian Prime Minister wrote on Twitter.

Around 43 cities were affected due to floods and landslides, with more than 500 roads either closed for repairs or destroyed.

Earlier in the week, the Ravenna, Cesena and Forli rivers burst their banks as heavy rains lashed the country, which has seen nothing but parched land in the past two years. The World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Director for Europe, Hans Kluge, said that the WHO sympathizes with the lives lost in the natural disaster and stands ready to support as needed.

He said rescue workers from the Italian Red Cross, along with others, were working 24/7 to support the devastating floods in Emilia-Romagna. "An emergency fundraiser is underway as authorities map the full extent of the crisis," Kluge tweeted.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni shared images of the disaster with other world leaders at the G7 summit, during which French President Emmanuel Macron said France was ready to provide all possible help. According to Civil Protection Minister Nello Musumeci, Italy needs to adapt and review its flood protection standards nationwide as climate change gives way to extreme weather events in the Mediterranean.