12 TORNADOES and waterspouts hit SICILY in just over a day, leaving one dead - VIDEOS
An unprecedented wave of extreme weather is causing major damages and even a victim in Sicily, after at least 12 tornadoes and waterspouts ravaged the southern Italian island.
A low pressure system has been stationing over the central-western part of the Mediterranean for many days, causing violent thunderstorms, locally associated with extensive flooding, large hail and tornadic activity. Major damages were reported in Comiso, where a petrol station was destroyed by a tornado, and in Modica, struck by another tornado that sadly killed a 53-year old man. Many waterspouts were also reported, also producing some damage after their landfall in Licata. Countless households have been severely damaged and widespread black-outs are reported after many power grid pylons were hit by tornadoes and collapsed.
Not only rain and destructive winds hit the island, but also snow: Sicily's famous volcano, Mt. Etna, saw snowstorms falling as low as 1500-1600 m asl during today's morning.
This autumn is proving to be one of the most extreme to be ever witnessed over southern Italy and Sicily in particular, with an almost uninterrupted series of severe weather events going on since early October. As an example, the town of Linguaglossa, on the easter slopes of Mt. Etna, recorded a staggering 700 mm of rainfall in October alone, a value well above the yearly rainfall of London, England.