Venice closes St Mark’s Square as floods hit for third time in week

Italian city suffers worst series of high tides since 1872, with an estimated cost of €1bn

Venice has closed St Mark’s Square as the city suffered a third major flooding in less than a week, while rain lashed the rest of Italy and warnings were issued in Florence and Pisa.

Venice was hit with an “acqua alta”, or high water, of 150cm (5ft) on Sunday, lower than Tuesday’s 187cm – the highest level in half a century – but still dangerous.

“Maximum attention for today’s tide,” tweeted the city’s mayor, Luigi Brugnaro, who has estimated damage so far from the invading salt water at more than €1bn.

“St Mark’s Square is closed. Safety first,” he said as the sea water began to swamp the already devastated historic city where authorities have declared a state of emergency.

With four tides above 140cm since Monday, this is the worst week for high tides in Venice since 1872 when official statistics were first produced.

To the south, Tuscany’s president, Enrico Rossi, tweeted a warning of a “flood wave” on the Arno and said boards were being installed on the swollen river’s banks in Pisa “as a precautionary measure”.

Italian media showed paratroopers helping to bolster river defences in Pisa, with authorities monitoring the same river in Florence after heavy rain made it rise dramatically overnight.

Arno flooding devastated Renaissance jewel Florence in 1966, killing about 100 people and destroying thousands of priceless works of art. Civil protection units in Florence advised citizens not to stand near the Arno’s river banks.

The exceptionally high tides in Venice came after a brief respite on Saturday.

Emergency workers removed temporary walkways from St Mark’s Square as the water started to rise on Sunday, with only police and soldiers visible at about midday.

The major tourist site had already been shut for several hours on Friday as strong storms and winds battered the region, leaving it submerged by sea surges.

Churches, shops and homes have also been inundated in the city, a Unesco world heritage site.

A massive infrastructure project called Mose has been under way since 2003 to protect the city, but the multibillion-euro project has been plagued by cost overruns, corruption scandals and delays.

“We weren’t expecting the high waters to be so exceptionally high,” said Guido Fulgenzi, who had planned to open his cafe on St Mark’s Square this week.

“We’re paying the prices [for the Mose project not being completed],” he said, sloshing around in his flooded kitchen and pointing to Tuesday’s high-water mark on the wall.

The crisis has prompted the government to release €20m (£17m) in funds to tackle the devastation.

The culture minister, Dario Franceschini, has warned the task of repairing the city, where more than 50 churches have suffered damage, will be huge.

Residents whose houses have been hit are eligible for up to €5,000 in immediate government aid, while restaurant and shop owners can receive up to €20,000 and apply for more later.

Most of the city’s cash machines were no longer working because of the water, making life even more difficult for tourists and Venetians.

Older residents who remember the infamous acqua alta of 1966, when the water rose to a level of 1.94m, say they have not seen such frequent flooding before.

Hotels reported cancelled reservations, some as far ahead as December, after the widespread dissemination of images of Venice underwater.

Tuesday’s high waters submerged about 80% of the city, officials said.

Many, including Venice’s mayor, have blamed the disaster on global warming and warned that the country prone to natural disasters must wake up to the risks posed by ever more volatile seasons.

The Serenissima, as the floating city is called, is home to 50,000 residents and receives 36 million visitors each year.

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