Residents count cost of a climate risk hotspot

Damage to northern region ignites debate in acountry where just 6% are insured against natural disaster

- Angela Giuffrida

It was 2am when parish priest Giovanni Samorì was woken by a phone call from the mayor of Traversara ordering him to start ringing the church bells. The pealing now forms part of the civil protection procedure deployed by many Italian towns to warn residents of impending calamity. It worked: the evacuation of Traversara's 480 residents was swift and, despite the priest's foreboding, there were no deaths.

But, a few weeks on from the flooding of 19 September, the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna was struck by its third devastating storm in less than 18 months. This time the hamlet on the banks of the Lamone River, about 40 minutes from the regional capital of Bologna, was all but wiped out.

In its place is a debate about insurance coverage for climaterelated catastrophes. Italy has become known by scientists as one of Europe's climate risk hotspots and is beginning to reckon with the widespread implications of extreme weather to livelihoods and the economy. Just 6% of homes are insured against natural disasters, and 5% of businesses. That, says the government, needs to change.

In Traversara, residents are coming to terms with the reality of their losses. Waterlogged land is all that remains of a cluster of homes that flooded after the river overflowed its banks. Other houses are filled with debris.

Cristina Baccarini is waiting to hear whether her parents' home, which was also damaged by flooding in May 2023, needs to be demolished. A bed and radiator protrude from the smashed outside wall of the bedroom where the elderly couple were sleeping.