Justin's First Blog

Extreme weather presents significant challenges to many areas in Italy.  Heavy rainfall stands out among this group of hazards.  Just this week, the west coast of Italy, in Tuscany, dealt with extreme rainfall that turned the roadways into rivers with a recorded rainfall of 1.3 inches in just 15 minutes.  Italy is full of trees and extremely aged buildings, which makes extreme rainfall a significant hazard.  The heaviest rainfall usually occurs in Northern/Central Italy which are heavy mountain areas.  Rainfall in Northern Italy is very similar to rainfall in Northern California in totality. Things that can be done by Individuals to mitigate hazards to themselves and property are to:     -Have a safety plan.  Have resources and food/water available in case of power outages or road                   closures.     -Plant trees (not too close to your house) and other vegetation to help absorb waterfall.     -Do not attempt to cross waterflow created by heavy rainfall.. Things Government c

As I expected, Italy is certainly no stranger to mass wasting.  Given their location in relation to two major tectonic plates, the formation of mountains and hills are prevalent in Italy, specifically in the Campania region.  If you have been anywhere in Italy, you know there are a lot of hills because your legs are definitely sore the entire time.  As you can see in the map below, mass wasting is extremely prevalent in all the mountain regions from the Italian Alps to the North, running all the way down the center of Italy, to the Campania region in the South.  The major triggers for mass wasting are caused by earthquakes, but are primarily caused by rain and flooding.  Mass wasting is especially dangerous in Italy due to the dense population in mountain regions.  Since 1950, at least 4.105 people have died in 661 landslides.   The Italian government spends approximately .9 billion Euros per year managing damage caused by landslides.  The most dangerous rockslide to occur in Italy ha