Severe storms strike northern Italy as flood sirens sound in Chiavari and 150 evacuate Val Badia

Flash floods and siren alerts in Liguria

Severe thunderstorms struck northern Italy on 20 August, causing urban flooding along the Ligurian coast and prompting municipal emergency alarms. In Chiavari, located in the province of Genoa, rainfall reached 103 millimetres in a single hour, submerging city streets and turning thoroughfares into torrents. The local municipality activated emergency sirens to warn residents of the imminent risk of flooding from the Rupinaro torrent. Officials instructed citizens to evacuate ground-floor and basement premises immediately, relocate to higher floors, and avoid bridges, walkways, and riverbanks.

The municipality of Chiavari issued an alert outlining the high risk across vulnerable low-lying districts:

The announcement of the alarm phase indicates an imminent situation of high risk.

In nearby Lavagna, floodwaters inundated multiple road underpasses, including Via Colombo, Via Previati, Via Eraldo Fico, and Via Nino Bixio. Firefighters intervened in the Nino Bixio underpass to rescue an individual trapped inside a submerged van. Minor flooding was also recorded in the Ri Basso neighbourhood of Chiavari and in Genoa's Certosa district, while the Entella river maintained a low level and absorbed runoff without spilling.

Transport paralysis across coastal transit routes

The storm system severely disrupted road and rail infrastructure across Liguria. Flooding along the A12 Genoa-Rome motorway caused traffic queues between Chiavari and Recco, as well as between Chiavari and Lavagna. Strong winds tore roofs and brought down trees in several coastal municipalities, adding to travel obstructions.

A lightning storm registered between 37,000 and 40,000 electrical discharges across Liguria, with more than 20,000 strikes concentrated over Genoa alone. Lightning strikes disrupted electrical systems at the Ventimiglia railway station, halting train services near the French border. Railway traffic across the wider Genoa junction slowed down substantially, creating delays on lines running toward both Ventimiglia and La Spezia.

Landslides and evacuations in the Alpine north

Beyond the coastal areas, convective weather systems moved across Trentino-Alto Adige, Lombardy, and Veneto, bringing hail and heavy rain to Alpine valleys. In the Val Badia region of South Tyrol, a landslide displaced approximately 150 people during the afternoon. A large mass of mud, rock debris, and sediment broke loose near the settlement of San Cassiano, completely blocking the roadway connecting to Capanna Alpina.

Emergency crews in Trentino responded to numerous fallen trees blocking roads following sudden afternoon squalls. Further east and south, gusting winds and hailstorms damaged roofs and toppled vegetation in parts of Lombardy and Veneto, requiring interventions by regional civil protection teams.

Emergency response and stabilizing river levels

Regional weather service Arpal had issued a yellow weather alert scheduled to take effect at 10:00 on 20 August, though intense precipitation began at dawn. Storm cells formed over the sea around 08:00, producing rain columns visible from the coast before moving inland over Tigullio, Portofino, Rapallo, Lavagna, and Sestri Levante.

By late afternoon, water levels along the Rupinaro torrent receded from peak warning stages back to safer thresholds. The regional civil protection operations room continued active monitoring across Genoa and the eastern Tigullio basin. Municipal authorities noted that while local drainage capacity was saturated during the cloudburst, water in critical underpasses was gradually draining away.