Flooding in Venice
The 1st of December brought the Scirocco from the south and high tides in Venice. This, however, was one of the highest in about 22 years. The sirens sounded early in the morning alerting Venice of its arrival. It's a very strange feeling to be awakened to sirens and a bit frightening as the water moves silently in on the city covering the sidewalks, and starts percolating up inside the buildings on the first floors. Fortunately the previous week there had been slightly higher water and everyone had installed their metal gates.
The flooding is the combination of 2 naturally occurring events. The tides fluctuate depending on the season and the moon and when the higher tides combine with the winds (known locally as scirocco) which blow from the south up the ever shallowing Adriatic, there is no place for the water to go except to the cities along the coast and particularly Venice and Chiogga which are low lying areas.
Acompanying the flooding waters are also the winds of the scirocco which make walking and boat traffic difficult and dangerous. The effect on Venice is devestating with boat traffic stopping, people wadding through the streets in fishing waders and boots (stiavali). As the water recede it leaves behind mud, loose tiles and debris and the eventual mold and mildew. Except for extraordinarly high tides, such as this one, most goods in stores, homes and restaurants are always placed high enough to be above the tides.
Monday, however, in Murano it was high enough that there was water going all across the island from the boat stop Il Faro to the boat stop Colonna. Small fishing boats which could not go under the bridges actually went out on the sidewalks to go around the bridges.
The water leaves as silently as it arrives and the cleanup begins. Silt from the lagoon must be removed, sweeping, mopping and sanitizing to prevent the mildew keeps the locals busy for the next day, hoping that the following tide does not flood the city again. The pictures below cannot tell the whole story but will give you some idea of the depth of the water and the difficulty of getting around the city during these periods
Enjoy our picture story of the flood of Dec 2008 and if you'd like to see additional pictures and the story from November 04, click here
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Strada Nuova, near San Marcuola No tourist enjoying their espresso here today |
Strada Nuova looking towards the Ghetto. Most days this intersection is full of locals. |
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Everything floats on the streets, making it dangerous for walking. |
The guy at the news stand trying to save his magazines. |
As you can imagine walking is dangerous as you can't see the uneven pavement or steps. When it is cold as it was on Monday, it is even more uncomfortable getting around. Wading is harder as the water get deeper and wading etiquette (don't splash anyone) is important.
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| Shoppers keeper siphoning water from his store. | The water was inside the store, this store keeper didn't arrive in time. |
