Double waterspout hits Marsala in Sicily, injuring people and throwing a car into a ravine
Two waterspouts formed off Marsala's port on Friday morning and moved inland, damaging a school, buildings, cars and farmland in the Trapani area. Two people were taken to hospital after a car was thrown into a ravine at Petrosino.
Waterspouts strike Marsala and Petrosino
On Friday morning a double waterspout formed near the port of Marsala in the Trapani province of Sicily. The two vortices developed over the sea, a short distance from the coast, under a storm cloud, and then moved toward the mainland. Il Sole 24 ORE reported that the damage spread across buildings, cars and crops in the Trapani area as the funnels came ashore.
In Marsala, the De Gasperi school on via Nazionale was hit and several people were injured. Il Fatto Quotidiano names the school as the De Amicis school and reports only minor injuries there. At Petrosino, a car was struck and thrown into a ravine, and its two occupants were hurt and taken to hospital. Ambulance staff from the 118 emergency service and firefighters were sent to the scene.
Damage and rescue work
Fanpage reported that the wind tore up guardrails, knocked down many electricity poles and overturned several cars in the stadium area of Marsala. It also damaged houses, school windows and roofs, and flooded some buildings, causing significant interior damage. Fanpage described a separate, large tornado in the countryside that pushed a car driven by a man off the road and onto a vineyard. The Centro Meteorologico Siciliano said there were also injuries, which it described as fortunately not serious.
Five firefighting teams from the provincial stations at Petrosino and Marsala were deployed, and two more were sent from Santa Margherita Belice and Palermo. The provincial fire command in Trapani is coordinating the response in the Marsala area. Blick reported that the double waterspout moved toward the town of Trapani after forming off the coast of Marsala. Fanpage noted that a yellow weather alert had been issued the day before for all of Sicily, particularly the Trapani province.
Storms across Italy
Italy has been under a weather system since Thursday, which 20 Minuten described as the first pronounced Atlantic autumn low, bringing widespread rain, strong wind and a drop in temperatures. The weather service has issued warnings for 14 regions. In Tuscany an orange warning applies until Friday evening because of strong thunderstorms and hydrogeological risks. Schools in Livorno, Pistoia, Carrara and Grosseto were closed on Friday, and in Florence markets and a tram stop were temporarily shut.
- Rome fire brigade call-out count begins
- About 120 call-outs recorded in Rome since Thursday evening
- Double waterspout hits the Marsala area
According to Sky TG24, the Rome fire brigade recorded about 120 call-outs between 20:00 on Thursday and 08:00 on Friday. In Chianti, wind overturned a motorhome on the road between Siena and Florence, and firefighters freed a couple from the vehicle. In Campania, flooding closed the SS7 Quater via Domitiana in both directions between kilometre 46.800 and kilometre 43.100 near Giugliano in Campania, and a supermarket wall collapsed in Pozzuoli. In Cremona province, almost 100 millimetres of rain fell in a few hours at Castelleone, with hail, strong gusts and water up to thirty centimetres deep on the ground.
