Bad weather in Veneto, Luca Zaia issued a regional state of emergency

Venice, July 19th. (Askanews) – The President of the Veneto Region, Luca Zaia, signed the declaration of a regional state of emergency after very bad weather hit the Veneto Dolomites region, causing massive damage.

Zaia continues to stay in contact with the mayors of the affected areas and the teams that intervene, while the activity of collecting reports on damage is underway. The picture, for now, is as follows: After the rapid crossing of the squall line, the regions of Upper Comilico, Cadore and Agordino were severely affected by strong winds and hail. Wind speeds have been measured with gusts of 129 km/h at Cortina d’Ampezzo and greater than 140 km/h at high altitudes.

A preliminary survey showed that more than thirty buildings sustained damage due to the high winds: of these, about fifteen were without roofs. In Santo Stefano di Cadore, about a dozen people were evacuated due to roof damage. Many trees have fallen to the ground, especially in the eastern region, affecting state, provincial and local roads (SP 6 of Danta di Cadore closed overnight due to fallen trees – reopened before 8:00). Fortunately, the smashed trees damaged several vehicles (quantification in progress) without causing any injuries.

As a result of the storms, there were power and telecommunications outages in some areas, but at the moment it appears that functions have been restored. More than 100 interventions by permanent and voluntary firefighters, teams of civil protection volunteers and operators of road, electricity and telecommunications infrastructures, in Veneto Stride, as well as municipal employees.