Hurricanes and extreme rainfall are currently creating dramatic scenes in Italy, Croatia and Slovenia. Six people died as a result of severe flooding in the Italian city of Ancona. A hurricane caused severe damage in the Croatian city of Čazma on Thursday evening.
A severe weather warning of the highest level has been issued for all of Croatia and the south of Slovenia, there is a risk of death. Up to 400 liters of rain per square meter are expected on Friday and Saturday, plus gusts of wind and possibly even tornadoes. Flash floods, floods, mudslides and landslides are feared.
The storm hit Croatia on Thursday afternoon. The town of Čazma was hit the hardest. Numerous trees were uprooted, roofs were torn off and several trucks were overturned by the hurricane force winds. Luckily nobody was injured here. By Friday evening, Croatian fire brigades had to be called out a total of 223 times, mainly because of overflowing rivers and flooded basements. Huge amounts of precipitation are currently threatening the city of Karlovac, as the level of the Kupa River is rising by 30 centimeters every hour. It is expected that the city’s flood protection will no longer be able to withstand during the course of Saturday.
In Slovenia, a road was torn down in Kobarit. There were a total of 191 fire service operations from Thursday to Friday. On Friday morning it had already rained 260 liters per square meter in some towns. There were numerous floods in Ljubljana and the surrounding area. In Kobarid, a road was undermined and torn away. The state severe weather center ARSO warns against approaching bodies of water. The water levels are already dramatically high, and by Friday morning alone, more than 260 liters of rain per square meter had fallen in some places. The warning level is red, and the situation is not expected to relax until Saturday afternoon.
River levels are currently rising dramatically. In the municipality of Osilnica, on the banks of the Kolpa in southern Slovenia, near the Croatian border, more than ten houses were flooded on Friday afternoon. A resident tried to get her animals to safety and fell into the river, but she was rescued. Flooding is expected along the Ljubljanica, Krka and smaller rivers, especially in central and western Slovenia.
There shouldn’t be a short breather until Sunday, but further precipitation has already been announced for the beginning of the coming week. Temperatures will have dropped below average for this time of year.
Explosive Weather Conditions
All weather models have been showing signs of extreme weather events for Italy, Croatia and Slovenia for several days. Meteorologists were particularly worried on Friday and Saturday and the forecasts seem to have come true. “Due to the prolonged heatwave and the drought, the Adriatic Sea heated up to record levels in the summer. The hot air blowing from the south towards the coast is charged with an incredible amount of energy and water. At the same time, a cold air current comes over from the north the Alps, the warm, charged air is lifted and an explosive mixture is created,” explains Andreas Mansberger from the Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics (Zamg). Ideal conditions for tornadoes or even hurricanes to develop.
Due to the large amounts of water, floods and mudslides are expected, also in view of the dry soil. “In mountain regions, heavy thunderstorms and rainfall of 100 to 400 liters per square meter are expected,” says Mansberger. Very strong southerly winds are expected in Dalmatia. Tornadoes and coastal flooding are expected in the northern Adriatic.