Lecco – A perfect storm . It’s the one that hit half of Lombardy on Friday evening, hit by one water bomb. He explains it Mattia Gussonicertified meteorological technician of the Meteo.it team, the first Italian internet portal dedicated to meteorology.
What caused the wave of bad weather in the region?
“Following the days of extreme heat due to the African anticyclone from the south, a lot of potential energy accumulated and was released. The fuse that triggered it was the cooler air arriving from northern Europe. The disturbance first it was formed in Piedmont, then it moved to Lombardy, especially towards the border with Switzerland”.
Was it an anomalous phenomenon, or is it normal this season?
“It was an extreme event. Analyzing the historical data series, there are no similar precedents for the Alpine and pre-Alpine areas. In just a few hours, 90 to 100 millimeters of water rained, the equivalent of the average rainfall for the whole month However, certain phenomena are becoming more and more frequent, due to ongoing climate change. Torrid heat alternating with sudden violent storms are two sides of the same coin.”
Was what happened predictable?
“Yes and in fact an orange alert bulletin has also been issued by the Lombardy Region. Although these are sometimes very localized events, we have the tools to predict similar phenomena also at a detailed level, at least over the period of 12pm, maximum previous 24 hours”.
What should we expect for the next few days?
“Another storm front is probable, first passing through the provinces of Como and Lecco, then extending over the Bergamo and Brescia Prealps. The weather could be very unstable until this afternoon. Latent instability is possible even in the first days of the week The situation should improve on Wednesday.”
So should summer finally arrive from Wednesday?
“Maybe yes, but in Lombardy we must always be very careful. Events like the one on Friday evening could happen again. In Lombardy we find ourselves in a convergence area of hot African air from the south and cool air from the north. this is that the Prealps are very rainy”.
