Several people are missing and dozens of vehicles have been swept away as catastrophic floods hit Italy’s Marche region following SIXTEEN inches of rain in just seven hours

• The huge amount of rain was recorded in Cantiano, 16 inches in seven hours 
• Clips show people wading through muddy floodwater and submerged cars
• Flooding is part of a wave of storms currently hitting regions across Italy 
• Farmers association Coldiretti says it is the 1,642th extreme weather event of summer

Several people are missing and dozens of vehicles have been swept away as catastrophic floods hit Italy’s Marche region following sixteen inches of rain in just seven hours. 

Cantiano recorded the huge amount of rain, second only to the region of Liguria, which saw 496mm (19 inches) of rain in 6 hours at Montenotte in October 2021. 

A clip posted on Telegram shows people waist-deep in water clutching umbrellas as the floods take hold of the Marche region.

There are cars around them submerged in muddy water as rain continues to pour down.  

As they wade through it, the person holding the camera pans around to debris and nearby buildings dangerously close to the flooding.  

A clip posted on Telegram shows people waist-deep in water clutching umbrellas as the floods take hold of the Marche region

Footage also shows a huge mud river in Sassoferrato and a flooded Sentino river as dirty water last night swept through the streets.

The huge deluge of water appears to be carrying debris and hits a building as people watch on and emergency vehicles are seen in the background.

Another video shows more fast-flowing downpours overtaking the streets of Senigallia as emergency services arrive on scene.

The flooding hitting the Marche region, is, according to Ansa, part of a wave of storms hitting the country.

Other regions experiencing storms are Tuscany, Umbria, Abruzzo, Fruili Venezia Guilia, Lombardy, Liguria and Molise. 

It is the latest in a long series of extreme-weather events which have happened in Italy this summer.

The total number is 1,642 this summer which farmers association Coldiretti yesterday said is five times the amount of a decade ago. 

Coldiretti released the figures on the basis of data from the European Severe Weather Database.

The ESWD database regards events such as tornadoes, heavy rain, large hail and lightning strikes.   

Cars are seen in huge levels of water as people hold umbrellas next to the flooded road 

Coldiretti said that the long hot summer in Italy which had drought was interrupted by violent rainfall. 

It added that the amount of extreme weather events has caused more than six billion euros of damage to agriculture in 2022- 10 per cent the value of national production. 

The farmer’s association added: ‘We are before the clear consequences of climate change, where exceptional atmospheric events are now the norm in Italy too, with a tendency towards tropicalisation manifest in more frequent violent events, seasonal shifts, short, intense precipitations, the fast passage from sunshine to bad weather, with significant changes in temperature that compromises crops, with the loss of production and damage to structure and infrastructure in the countryside’.

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