Italy's deadly floods example of climate change's all-or-nothing extremes
The floods that sent rivers of mud tearing through towns in Italy's northeast are another drenching dose of climate change's all-or-nothing weather extremes, something that has been happening around the globe, scientists say.
The coastal region of Emilia-Romagna was struck twice, first by heavy rain two weeks ago on drought-parched ground that could not absorb it, causing rivers to overflow overnight, followed by this week's deluge that killed 14 and caused damages estimated in the billions of euros.
In a changing climate, more rain is coming, but it's falling on fewer days in less useful and more dangerous downpours.
The hard-hit Emilia-Romagna region was particularly vulnerable. Its location between the Apennine mountains and the Adriatic Sea trapped the weather system this week that dumped half the average annual amount of rain in 36 hours.
"These are events that developed with persistence and are classified as rare,' Fabrizio Curcio, the head of Italy's Civil Protection Agency,