Terrifying vids show flash floods surging through Italian towns leaving at least one dead & dozens trapped after storm
Franco Chiaffrino, a 70-year-old fruit seller, was killed after he was hit by a torrent of water while getting out of his van, local media
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Flash floods in northwestern Italy left one dead and over a dozen trapped
Credit: X/Centro Meteo Piemonte
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Bardonecchia flooded after heavy rains on Monday
Credit: X/@vigilidelfuoco
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Heavy rains burst the banks of the Frejus waterway
Credit: X/@vigilidelfuoco
Shocking videos show churning black water surging down the Frejus - a tunnel connecting France and Italy.
Torrential rain caused the waterway to break its banks, unleashing a violent flood across the region.
Rescuers are seen looking on helplessly as entire streets are submerged in the muddy floodwaters.
Residents were warned by the mayor to stay in their homes and avoid driving.
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Franco was killed in Bardonecchia - a resort town 56 miles west of Turin, which hosted snowboarding events during the 2006 Winter Olympics.
Firefighters rescued at least 10 people trapped in buildings by the floods, along with a few people stuck in their cars, local media reported.
Alberto Cirio, President of the Piedmont Region, said on social media: "Today a water bomb hit the town of Bardonecchia suddenly, causing damage and unfortunately a victim."
He added: "We are increasingly faced with emergency situations due to weather events that we used to call exceptional but are now more and more frequent."
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A similar disaster struck Bardonecchia in 2023 after heavy rains caused two streams - including the Frejus - to overflow.
Although a major landslide swept away cars and debris, no fatalities were reported.
Two dead including child as France smashed by storms with Paris hit with flash floods & 39,000 lightning strikes
The heavy rains in northwestern
Italy
come as extreme weather has gripped much of Europe - from thunderstorms in the continent's central countries to scorching heat in the Mediterranean.
In France, at least two people - including a child -
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According to Lightning Maps, a weather-tracking website, more than 39,000 lightning strikes were recorded across France.
Over 100,000 homes were left in the dark after power lines were ripped down and metro stations were turned into indoor rivers.
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The Frejus also overflowed in August 2023
Credit: X/@mirocale
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Streets were submerged in dirty water
Credit: X/Centro Meteo Piemonte
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Heavy storms also swept across large parts of Germany over the weekend, hitting regions including Saxony, Thuringia, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.
Lightning strikes also caused fires, including one at a horse farm in Keltern, German Bavarian newspaper Münchner Merkur
In Austria, a supercell storm
The hardest-hit regions were reportedly Styria, Tyrol, and Lower
Austria
.
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Meanwhile, Greece, Spain and
Italy
are in the grip of a heatwave, with temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius.
Another wildfire broke out that same day on coastal area of Palaia Fokaia, south of Athens.
A motorway in northern
Italy
was closed on Thursday as temperatures caused roads to melt, local media reports.
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A freak build-up of heat in the North Atlantic is believed to be driving the unusually high temperatures sweeping across Europe - well above the seasonal average.
Scientists say that climate change is fuelling extreme weather events.
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Wildfires raged for three days on the Greek island of Chios
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