Milan hit by heaviest rainfall in 170 years as severe storms, tornado impact northern Italy

Severe storms over the past few days have caused historic rainfall and significant damage in northern Italy, particularly affecting the regions of Veneto and Lombardy. Milan experienced its heaviest rainfall in 170 years, leading to widespread flooding and travel disruptions.

In Milan, Lombardy, two rivers burst their banks on May 15 and 16 after the city experienced what is reported as ‘the heaviest rainfall in 170 years.’

The Lambro was the first river to exceed its banks, overflowing first in some Milanese neighborhoods and then in Monza Park, ANSA reported. The Seveso River broke its banks late afternoon (LT) on May 16.

“In Ponte Lambro, we have 170 people without electricity,” said the mayor of Milan, Giuseppe Sala. “We are also finding an emergency solution for tonight…” In Rilke Street, fire brigade divers intervened to help a disabled woman who could not leave her house. The fallen trees also hampered public transport.

Cars in a car park in Monza were submerged in water and several nursery schools and schools were evacuated. The mayor of the the city, Paolo Pilotto, urged residents citizens not to use their cars. In Bernareggio, Monza, a retaining wall collapsed and as a precaution, the three families living in an adjacent building were evacuated.

A violent supercell thunderstorm in the late afternoon of May 16, accompanied by very violent gusts of wind (likely exceeding 150 – 200 km/h or 93 – 124 mph), caused the freight train to overturn in Borgo Matovano, a municipality in the Province of Mantua, Lombardy, InMeteo reported, adding that observations suggest the presence of a tornadic vortex within the thunderstorm supercell.

“Shocking images from the area show numerous overturned freight train carriages and other damage in the surrounding areas. It is not excluded that this damage was caused by a more extreme meteorological event, such as a tornado. However, at the moment we favor the hypothesis of intense linear gusts, probably close to if not exceeding 150 km/h (93 mph).”

In an update, InMeteo said that from the analysis of the available radar images, a superstorm cell with a mesocyclone and a “hook” structure passed over the area, making it probable that a tornado, albeit localized, occurred in the area.

More than 1 000 interventions were performed throughout Lombardy in two days.

A 66-year-old man is missing and feared dead after falling into the Serenza River at Cantù, near Como, on May 16, when a bridge collapsed amid violent rain and water flows.

In the Veneto region, emergency services performed more than 1 800 interventions in two days.

Major critical issues were reported in the Padua area on May 17 where the Muson dei Sassi in Camposampiero caused widespread flooding during the night, forcing evacuations.

Over 100 firefighters used amphibious vehicles to evacuate people following the floods.

A Yellow Thunderstorm Warning is in effect throughout northern Italy on May 17.

References:

¹ Meteo: Downburst o Tornado a Borgo Mantovano, venti violentissimi rovesciano un treno merci, il Video – InMeteo – May 17, 2024

² Homes cut off after river bursts banks in Veneto – ANSA – May 17, 2024

³ Lambro river level still concerning – ANSA – May 16, 2024

Featured image credit: Mayor Alberto Borsari