People cleaning outside a flooded house in Pianello di Ostra, Italy, on Sept. 16. Photo: Alessandro di Meo/ANSA/AFP via Getty Images
At least nine people were killed and four were missing from flooding caused by heavy rainfall across Italy's central Marche region on Friday, Italian wire service ANSA reports.
The big picture: Hospitals in the area had treated around 50 people for injuries from the flooding, while rescue operations were launched for Senigallia, Barbara and Cantiano and other more remote towns in the Apennine Mountains, according to AP.
- 1,300 people in Barbara were without drinking water, and two children were among those missing.
- Senigallia and Cantiano were among the worst-hit cities.
By the numbers: Italy's civil protection agency said the region received 15.75 inches of rain in two to three hours, which is about a third of its annual amount, according to Reuters.
- State media reported that the town of Cantiano received 16.53 inches of rain in a few hours, The Guardian reports.
Human-caused climate change and global warming are making heavy precipitation events more common and more intense in certain parts of the world, as warm air holds more moisture and warmer oceans add more water vapor to the atmosphere
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