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Venice flooding today: Venice flood barriers installed – is it safe to travel to Venice?


Italy will today declare a state of emergency after fierce floods tore across its city of canals, Venice. Two people have died as a result of the city being hit by floods reaching the highest water levels seen for more than 50 years. Officials have warned that another surge is expected and could in fact worsen the flooding across the region. But are you able to safely travel to Venice?

Flood levels in the floating city hit the second-highest recorded level this week, hitting 1.87m (74 inches) on Tuesday night amid torrential rain. 

The current record was set in 1996 and was 1.96m.

Another deluge engulfed Venice on Wednesday morning, causing the high waters to reach 1.6m.

Although most of the water had receded by the afternoon, residents are bracing themselves for worse to come as weather forecasters predict high tides of 1.2m and 1.3m on Wednesday night and Thursday morning respectively.

READ MORE: Venice mayor blames climate change as rush is on to build defences

Venice is a city situated on a group of 118 small islands which are separated by canals and linked by more than 400 bridges.

The islands are located in the shallow Venetian Lagoon, an enclosed bay that lies between the mouths of the Po and the Piave rivers.

The city sits on thousands of wooden piles set deep into the mud, however, rising sea levels and heavy cruise ship traffic have steadily degraded the marshes and mudbanks which is causing Venice to gradually sink.

The famous St Mark’s Square was submerged by more than one metre of water and the adjacent basilica was flooded for only the sixth time in 1,200 years, but the fourth time in the last two decades. 

The most recent flooding of this area was in November 2018 and it cost around €2.2m (£1.9m) to fix.

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Venice Mayor Luigi Brugnaro tweeted: “The damage to the city is huge.”

He added: “#Venezia he is on his knees. 

“The Basilica of San Marco has suffered serious damage like the entire city and the islands. 

“We are here with Patriarch Moraglia to bring our support but we need everyone’s help to overcome these days that are putting us to the test.”

So is it safe to travel to Venice now?

Roughly three million British nationals visit Italy each year.

As yet, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has not issued a travel warning or alert about visiting Venice.

Flooding across Venice has entered some of the city’s beloved and inspiring tourist attractions, such as St Mark;s Cathedral and the Ducal Palace.

City thoroughfares were turned into raging torrents, stone balustrades were shattered, boats tossed ashore and gondolas smashed against their moorings as the lagoon tide peaked at 187cm (74inches).

While the situation may be disconcerting for visitors, the city experiences regular flooding and officials have taken steps to ensure visitors are safe while the waters rise.

These measures include the installation of raised platforms for tourists still eager to see the sights and museums remaining open despite the difficult conditions.



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