Flooding in Venice

Posted by Miss Cellania in Travel & Places on December 2, 2008 at 10:40 am


What’s it like when a canal city has a flood? Venice, Italy is undergoing its worst flooding in 22 years as water has risen five feet above normal levels.

Venice’s lagoon often rises to 40 inches above its normal level during ‘acqua alta’ or high tides, particularly in autumn and winter.

But anything above 50 inches risks flooding the city and causing chaos for its 60,000 permanent residents and the tens of thousands of tourists who descend on it each day.

The worst flood in modern times was in 1966, when the lagoon rose more than six feet and caused widespread damage.

Experts say the severity and frequency of floods is becoming worse due to silt deposits raising the floor of the lagoon and a rise in sea levels caused by global warming

Flood control barriers under construction are not expected to be operational until 2012. Link -Thanks, Freshome!


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12 comments to "Flooding in Venice"

  1. belled27
    December 2nd, 2008 at 11:13 am

    I hope they get the Flood Controls working as soon as possible. Venice is my favorite city to visit.

    This post and the article really made me want to cry.

  2. qwhacker
    December 2nd, 2008 at 11:59 am

    i never realized how often it flooded. i'm going in may and i hope i don't run into any floods

  3. belled27
    December 2nd, 2008 at 1:04 pm

    qwhacker - be wary of the smell in May, but flooding should not be a problem

  4. Coyote
    December 2nd, 2008 at 3:52 pm

    So 50" in 2008 is global warmings fault, but a 72" flood in 1966 is just normal weather?

  5. DOJ
    December 2nd, 2008 at 7:48 pm

    Coyote, it's at 60" now (not 50")
    they are claiming what was an outlier in 1966, isn't as much of an outlier in 2008's environment

  6. liphttam1
    December 2nd, 2008 at 9:33 pm

    Sorry to offend, but I always kind of liked the swimming pool city idea.

  7. qwhacker
    December 2nd, 2008 at 9:43 pm

    @belled27 - i live in a house with 4 other male roommates... the smell shouldn't be a problem :P

  8. yo
    December 3rd, 2008 at 10:50 am

    As soon as I started reading this story, I KNEW this flooding would be blamed on "Global Warming," and I was right! The simple fact is that venice was built in a poor location - swampy islands right at sea level. It has flooded thousands of times over its history. The city is sinking due to old (now stopped) method of pumping groundwater out from under it. This, coupled with NATURALLY OCCURRING weather patterns, and shifting levels in the adriatic seas, are the most likely cause, not sensationalistic claims of 'global warming.' Such flippant talk makes me sick. See this article for more info:
    http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2002/venice-1106.html

    While the article also talks about rising sea levels, it doesn't glibly attribute them to global warming. Here's the money quote:

    "The increased flooding is caused by two things: the city is sinking and sea level is rising.

    After World War II, water needed by new industry was obtained by pumping groundwater from nearby areas. As the water table decreased, the islands began sinking. The practice of pumping groundwater was stopped shortly after the devastating flood of 1966, and the city is now sinking at the much lower rate of 0.4mm per year.

    At the same time, the Adriatic Sea and other ocean waters have been rising at the rate of 1.6mm per year, PERHAPS DUE TO NATURAL CAUSES [emphasis added]. "It could be the ubiquitous sea level rise that occurs around the world and has been going on fairly consistently since the last glacial period," said Bras. "You can debate whether it is accelerating or not, but so far I see no evidence of acceleration."

  9. Rocky Rook
    December 4th, 2008 at 10:31 pm

    I never understood why people are shocked about flooding in Venice and New Orleans.

  10. H D Dunn
    December 9th, 2008 at 1:21 am

    How come when Venice floods, it Global Warming to blame but NYC, Miami, Galveston, London, and other cities sit at only inches above sea level and they only flood when an extraordinary event i.e. hurricane and 5 to 10 inches of sudden rain fall. So my question is "If we all know from elementary school science classes that water seeks its own level, then how come the melting ice cap from global warming isn't causing the water level to rise uniformly." I listened to a joker the other night discussing how global warming and he gave all these scary details about Miami, Galveston, New Orleans, London, etc. flooding due to global warming. What was strange he never once mentioned New York -- that's where he lives--I've been to NYC like most people and I tell you that the ocean is right there--only a few feet below where you stand in Battery Park......

  11. Venice Italy
    December 15th, 2008 at 7:11 am

    Just to specify and be precise, Venice suffers from high tides, but it not like a flood, water arrives and goes away in few hours, the venetians are used to it and are organized for that. The last relevant event of high tide in any case, was the greatest of the last 22 years, and the picture above is taken from St. Mark's Square the lowest part of the city.

    I don't say is nothing, but it is not such a devastating event that journals and media are trying to make people belive!

    A venetian

  12. susana
    December 19th, 2008 at 12:32 pm

    Hola, alguien sabe como esta actualmente venecia? voy para alla mediados de enero, y queria saber con que me voy a encotnrar, si sera visitable. Y es mi primera vez
    Gracias


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