damage and flooding in Reggio, Modena and Ravenna, live coverage of today’s bad weather

A water bomb affected a vast area between the Lower and Reggio Emilia plains, especially in the area between Novellara and Reggiolo, where there was also a brief but intense hailstorm. Inconvenience and damage.

On the A1 Milan-Naples, in the stretch between the end of the Complanare to Piacenza and Fiorenzuola in the direction of Bologna there are several kilometers of queues (decreasing only in the late evening) due to the heavy rains that are affecting the Piacenza area. Traffic police patrols and staff from the management of the 2nd Milan section of Autostrade per l’Italia are present on site. The Arda Ovest service area, as Autostrade per l’Italia explains on its website, is closed, as is the Fiorenzuola station at the exit from Milan.

Hailstorm with strong winds also in the Modena area, which also caused considerable damage to the countryside. Coldiretti, in its bulletin, explains that the hail “fell copiously with grains of small diameter so as to give the illusion of an unseasonal snowfall. The wheat and barley crops, which were ‘enticed’ by the wind, paid the price , but also the orchards and vineyards”.

“They are also scheduled for the evening locally intense storm phenomena for the entire Ravenna area – warns a note from the Municipality of Ravenna -. We continue to recommend maximum caution and in particular: pay attention to possibly flooded roads and do not access the underpasses in case they are found flooded; secure objects sensitive to the effects of rain, hail and wind or susceptible to being damaged”.

The hail also hit the part of the province of Bologna that extends towards the Imola area: hail and water in the streets also in Osteria Grande (video).

Damage also on via Idice at the gates of Monterenzio: a landslide that reopened on the mountainside invaded via Idice on the climb towards Monterenzio: the road is not closed to traffic (otherwise Monterenzio would be isolated) but it is flooded and great caution is recommended.

As images arrive, we understand the great damage caused by the cell he crossed in Ravennate, then pushing towards the Po Delta: le completely whitewashed streets hailstones predict serious damage to crops in the fields, already in advanced flowering. It is not excluded that damage to cars and solar panels was also recorded.​​​​​​

The violent wave of bad weather also hit the part of the province of Bologna that extends towards Imola: in particular Osteria Grande (video), where a very violent storm also discharged small and medium-sized hail.

The violent storms that are hitting Romagna also create traffic difficulties also on the A14: Beware of sudden drops in visibility that require motorists and truck drivers to suddenly reduce speed.

Danger on the A14 due to visibility reduced to almost zero

The Lower Ravenna area, already put to the test by yesterday’s bad weather, is once again heavily hit: one devastating hailstorm with large stones (video) hit the area between Bagnacavallo, Cotignola and Lugo and Faenza and Lugo. The hail is accompanied by strong winds and very intense thunderstorms. There are certainly flooding and damage.​​​​​​

The intense supercell of bad weather on the Lower Ravenna area seen by the Arpae weather radar

“First storms on the hills between Bolognese and Ravennate, an area already affected by the bad weather yesterday: they are heading towards the plain and could intensify rapidly right on the plain”, warns Emilia Romagna Meteo. A deluge has also been reported in the Centese area.

Flooded fields in the area north of Cotignola

The intense storm with hail on the Apennines from Piacenza has moved to the province of Parma and is moving further towards the plain.

The whole system Civil protection and of Local police from the Lower Romagna it is active and operational and will be used in the area until the disruption ends. To report situations of difficulty or flooding, the toll-free emergency number 800 072525.

A exploded intense thunderstorm with associated hail on the mountain area of ​​the province of Piacenza and is in slow movement north. Affects the area between Perino, Marsaglia And Bobbio.​​​​​

Accumulations of hail still present today

“This morning we carried out a series of measurements at Sant ‘Antonio, Camerlona And Piangipanehamlets north of Ravennahit last night by the strong hailstorm for the passage of the storm cell that had passed from Imola towards Bagnara, then continuing from Cotignola to Bagnacavallo. It is impressive to still see them in the fields and on the roadsides large accumulations of hail, as well as crops of all types that are completely compromised. There are also still several floods.” So says a post that appeared this morning on the Facebook profile of Defends Ravennathe Consortium for the Defense of Intensive Production of the Province of Ravenna.

Flooded fields and accumulations of hail the day after the storm (photo Scardovi)

“We reiterate the risk of very intense phenomena this afternoon, possible thunderstorms with supercellular characteristics even today, accompanied by small/medium sized hail, strong gusts of wind and large quantities of rain in a short time, capable of creating local flooding”, say Meteoroby meteorologists.

“They are scheduled for today, Thursday 16 May also strong thunderstorms from the second part of the day, more likely in the plain areas of Emilia and Romagna, with possible associated effects and damage. It is recommended to implement appropriate self-protection measures – notifies the Civil Protection of Ravenna -, including, in this case: pay attention to the roads possibly flooded And do not access the underpasses in case they are found flooded; secure objects sensitive to the effects of rain, hail and wind or likely to be damaged”.

And again: “Please remember that the Municipality of Ravenna has equipped itself with the telephone information Alert System, which can be used to disseminate civil protection and public utility communications to all citizens. Those who have not yet done so are therefore invited to sign up for the service by registering using the form at this link“.

“For the Po river an increase in the hydrometric level is expected in the section of Piacenza around the 1 threshold”, the Arpae agency reports through its weather alert.

It will last until midnight on May 18th L’weather warning for thunderstorms in Emilia Romagna. Thunderstorm precipitation could cause rapid increases in hydrometric levels in the tributaries of the western plain, with possible exceeding of threshold 1.

“In the evening the phenomena will attenuate starting from the west where we also expect some relaxation”, concludes Nanni. “Stationary minimum temperatures or slightly decreasing with values ​​between 14 and 16 degrees and maximum local slight increase, between 18 and 21 degrees. Ventilation still sustained: with gusts from the south-east along the coasts of the upper Adriatic And eastern on the plains. During afternoon tendency to spread everywhere from the south-west and to strengthen, in particular along the Apennine ridge. Gusts of wind in stormy areas. Rough sea”.

“The rains are expected to extend to begin from the Western sectors And from the Apennine ridge about plains already from late morning”, continues the meteorologist Nanni. “The most accentuated and widespread phenomena are expected during the afternoon close to the Po and along the hills, when a large, long-track storm systemcould form on the Piacenza (crossing the northern plains of the provinces of Parma, Reggio Emilia and Ferrara) until reaching the lower Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia in the evening. The remaining areas are less affected but certainly not excluded from storms with more irregular effects“.

Destructive hailstorm in Sant’Antonio, north of Ravenna (Photo by Paolo Emme, from Emilia Romagna Meteo)

“It will be a day still marked by cloudy skies or very cloudy associated with showers And temporal which locally could be violent: rains concentrated with high precipitation rates (100-150 mm/h) associated with hailstorms up to medium size (4-5cm), frequent electrical activity and strong gusts of wind corresponding to the most severe storms”. These are the forecasts of the Ampro meteorologist, Roberto Nanni.

“The weather warning will continue in the next few hours: scattered storms will hit mainly Eastern Liguria, Upper Tuscany, from Lombardy to Friuli; from the afternoon bad weather will become even more widespread and the risk of superstorm cells between Emilia-Romagna, Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia: the Triveneto will be particularly affected, but pay attention to the entire Po Valley”, says Andrea Garbinato, meteorologist of the - website who confirms the arrival of the second disturbance associated with a stationary cyclone over Normandy.

Flooded fields (and not only) in the Ravenna area (Photo Scardovi)