Firefighters in Greece continue to fight uncontrollable blazes following the death of a 16 year old by a fallen tree during a storm
In the north of Italy, strong storms caused the death of an 18-year-old, and in the south, forest fires on the island of Sicily forced the airport to close Tuesday. This is part of a series of extreme events that have hit Southern Europe.
The combination of intense rain, hail, and wind speeds exceeding 100 km/hr in Milan caused flooding and damage to houses, as well as the falling of trees.
More than 200 calls for assistance were received by firefighters in response to a temporary water shortage that occurred at the center of the historical city. The public transport company reported damage to the electrical system.
A 16-year old girl Scout was killed by a falling tree in northern Brescia. She was asleep in her tent at the scout camps in Corteno Golgi, Lombardy. Firefighters evacuated the rest of group to an adjacent sports hall.
Yesterday, a 58-year old woman in Lissone in Lombardy died from the fall of a tree.
I was deeply saddened to learn of the tragic deaths caused by poor weather in two separate incidents, where a girl aged 16 and a woman age 60 were struck and killed by trees. “The government stands by the families of those who have lost loved ones,” tweeted Prime Minister Giorgia Mello.
According to the Lombardy Government, the damages already exceeded 100 million Euros. Romano La Russa is the regional secretary for Civil Defense and Security. He believes that this number will likely increase.
The governor of Friuli Veneza Gulia in northern Italy announced that 50 million euro would be allocated immediately to fight the bad weather.
He said that there has never before been an incident like this, noting the evacuation of older people as well as “dramatic damages” to agriculture and homes.
A heatwave is hitting southern Italy. The temperature in Catania in Sicily reached 47.6degC on Monday.
Closed Airport
Overnight, firefighters from Sicily battled several fires, including one that spread to Palermo Airport, which closed down for a few hours.
Approximately half the flights scheduled are flying at the moment. The rest have been canceled or diverted. The most important Terminal A will be closed through July 26. However, it’s not impossible that this closure may extend.
Rail transportation was disrupted as the flames spread.
Corriere della Sera reports that homes were evacuated from Capo Gallo near Palermo after the nature preserve “went up in fires” Monday night.
Italy has experienced “one of its most complex days” in recent years, due to the combination of heat, storms and tornadoes in northern Italy, as well as forest fires and hail in southern Italy.
“There is no excuse for anyone, given the recent climatic turmoil. But today we’ll focus on mitigating the damages,” said he.
Climate change would not have made it possible for heatwaves to occur in parts of Europe, North America, and Asia, including China, where temperatures reached record highs of 40 degrees and even 50 degrees Fahrenheit. The World Weather Attribution network (WWA), which reports today, said that this was “almost unthinkable” before.
This scientific network that studies climate change and extreme weather, found the recent heatwave in China was more likely due to climate disruptions caused human activity.
WWA states that climate change is a result of man-made greenhouse gases. Heat waves are longer and more common.
Researchers claim that recent heatwaves are not an exception and will become “even more intense and common if emissions do not reduce rapidly.”
Greece carried out new nightly evacuations on Monday due to the uncontrollable blazes which have been burning since days. The fires were fueled by an extreme heatwave with temperatures above 40degC.
Corfu, Euboea, and Corfu Island were under evacuation orders as a fire in Rhodes moved inland. It ravaged forested areas of the mountains, including an important nature reserve.
As soon as the sun rose, helicopters and planes joined the firefighting effort. Residents were desperate to put out the flames which threatened their houses. They used shovels.
Fire service spokesperson Yannis Artopios confirmed that a water-bomber plane crashed Tuesday while fighting a fire in the southern Euboea region.
A fire broke out in the Karystos heights on Sunday.
The two pilots, according to the Greek public broadcaster ERT belonged to their air force.
The plane is seen in a broadcast video disappearing behind thick smoke and flames at the moment of the accident.
More than 20,000 people, mostly tourists, have fled the island after the fire that swept two areas south of Rhodes on the weekend.
Vassilis Klikilias said that the Greek Firefighters have been fighting over 500 fires in forest areas, an average of 50 per day. This was done under conditions of extreme heat and high winds. “.
The Acropolis in Athens was again closed in the late afternoon during the heatwave.
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