Storm Boris is hitting the northeastern and central regions of Italy, days after causing widespread flooding in central Europe.
More than 1,000 residents in the northeastern region of Emilia Romagna were evacuated, while cities in the central Marche region of Italy reported severe flooding and disruption. There are no reports of casualties.
Schools in Emilia Romagna are closed. Some roads were affected by landslides and rail traffic was severely disrupted.
Authorities warned residents to stay out of their basements and move to the upper floors of their homes.
Schools, libraries and parks were closed in Ravenna, and the University of Bologna canceled exams and lectures.
The city of Faenza was the most affected, with the level of the two rivers that cross it rising rapidly during the night.
Residents quoted by local media said they had to leave their homes in boats in the middle of the night. The high levels of the river also caused the upper sewage system.
But authorities in nearby Bologna said Thursday morning that river levels in the city were under control, although the weather alert is expected to continue until Friday for most of the region. Red warnings for floods and landslides have been issued for eastern Emilia Romagna.
Falconara on the Adriatic coast has seen 204 mm (8 inches) of rain since Wednesday, well above the September average of about 67 mm. More than 300 mm of rain were recorded on the Apennine mountain region.
The rain will ease until Friday, and the weekend looks largely dry, but as seen in other parts of central Europe, the risk of flooding may continue.
For the residents of Emilia-Romagna, Storm Boris echoes the severe – and deadly – floods that the region faced just over a year ago.
In May 2023, 13 people died after six months of rainfall fell in a day and a half, leading to more than 20 rivers bursting their banks.
Tens of thousands of people had to flee their homes and the floods caused billions of euros in damage.
Italy is the last country to suffer the fury of Storm Boris – a low pressure system that swept across Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania and Austriakilling at least 23 people.
Although the worst seems to be over in much of the region, Danube river levels are still rising in Hungary. Prime Minister Victor Orban said on Wednesday that the water level in Budapest was expected to peak on Saturday afternoon or evening, but that it would be lower than the record levels seen in 2013.
The leaders of Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Austria are due to meet European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Wroclaw later today to discuss aid to the flood-hit region.
The city, in the southwest of Poland, is also threatened by the high levels of the rivers for days.
Recent events in central Europe fit expectations of more extreme rainfall in a warming world, although it is not yet possible to quantify exactly the role of climate change.
However, climate scientists have been warning for years about extreme rainfall events like these occurring as the planet warms.