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Forbes
Forbes
Technology
Eric Mack, Contributor

Venice Floods Near Record Levels, Waves Seen In St. Mark’s Square

UPDATE: An elderly man was killed while using electric pumps to contend with the worst flooding to hit Venice in half a century.

The news of the unnamed man’s death came from a spokesperson for the mayor ‘s office, as reported by CNN on Wednesday.

Italy’s famous city of canals is as much on the front line of climate change as anywhere else, and now that line is under water.

On Tuesday, rains helped bring the seasonal high tides known as acqua alta to near record levels, just seven centimeters short of what was seen during the historic floods of 1966.

“These are the effects of climate change,” Venice Mayor Luigi Brugnaro said on Twitter.

Flooding in Venice during the northern autumn season is a normal and expected occurrence, but high tide data from recent years shows the fingerprints of rising sea levels.

St. Mark’s Square at the city center has gone from flooding four times a year in 1900 to over 60 times annually in recent years.

Venice’s Archbishop Francesco Moraglia told reporters that winds were seen whipping up waves on the square and that the famous Basilica of the same name also flooded Tuesday for just the sixth time in twelve centuries – the fifth time was in 2018.

Venice is also subjected to the double threat of rising sea levels as well as the fact that the city is sinking from subsidence. And as for the rains that drove the waters to near record levels this week: scientists say more extreme precipitation events are to be expected as the world warms as well.

Venice is relatively ahead of the curve when it comes to adapting to the changes – a system of flood gates to protect the city have been under construction for years and are nearing completion.

Yet some still worry it may be too little, too late. Last year, the Basilica’s administrator said the flooding aged the historic treasure two decades in a single day. There’s been no word of the scale of damages from Monday’s flood just yet.

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