The Region and Civil Protection are preparing to deal with the wave of bad weather about to hit Sardinia: a red alert has been issued for the eastern parts of the island, while the rest of the country has been marked yellow.
The meeting convened by the Director General of the Civil Protection Agency, Mauro Merella, in agreement with the Regional Councilor for Environmental Protection, Rosanna Laconi, took place today. The meeting was attended by the mayors of the 83 municipalities affected by the red alert, representatives of the four Prefectures of the island, the Sardinian National Association of Municipalities (ANCI), and all other components and operational structures of the regional system, including the territorial coordinators of volunteer organizations.
Sardinia, it has been announced, is preparing for a period of severe weather "characterized by widespread rainfall and thunderstorms, some of which are severe, expected from this evening, Wednesday, November 4th, until tomorrow, Thursday, November 5th. The adverse weather warning signals thunderstorms that could affect the entire region, with greater intensity in the eastern sector, where high rainfall totals, locally very high, are expected."
The Decentralized Functional Center's criticality warning has identified different alert levels across the region: a red code for hydrogeological risk in the Flumendosa-Flumineddu and Gallura areas, an orange code for hydrogeological risk due to storms, and a yellow code for flood risk in the same areas. A yellow code for hydrogeological risk is expected in the other areas affected by the warning.
"Coordination is essential, and it's never enough to call for action: the top priority is protecting human lives. It's important for each municipality to activate its own Municipal Operations Center, ensure local monitoring, and implement all the actions outlined in its Civil Protection Plan," said Councilor Rosanna Laconi.
"We convened this meeting to share data from the ARPAS Decentralized Functional Center for the Weather Sector and the scenarios developed by the decentralized functional center with all the components of the regional system, starting with the mayors," added Civil Protection Director General Mauro Merella. "It is essential that each structure is ready to implement the procedures within its jurisdiction and that coordination among all the stakeholders is constant and effective."
Salvatore Natale of Arpas provided a detailed weather forecast, outlining the evolving weather conditions and the expected scenarios for the island. Precipitation, forecast to begin this evening and continue throughout tomorrow, could be characterized by strong and persistent thunderstorms, with locally significant cumulative rainfall. These phenomena could be particularly intense even in the early stages, with precipitation reaching locally 30 millimeters in an hour and accumulations of up to 70 millimeters within three hours.
Precipitation will affect the entire region, but the heaviest rainfall is expected in the eastern part of the country, particularly along the coastal areas and on the eastern mountains. Strong wind gusts are also expected across Sardinia.
The Director General emphasized the need for all municipalities to "implement the measures set forth in their respective Municipal Civil Protection Plans and for all operational structures to implement the relevant procedures."
Particular importance was also given to constantly updating information: the monitoring bulletin from the Decentralized Functional Center is issued every three hours and allows for the monitoring of the evolution of phenomena and critical issues.
The Prefecture of Cagliari has communicated the pre-alert of the Rescue Coordination Center (CCS); the Prefecture of Sassari has already issued bulletins and initiated contact with the fire department, while the Prefecture of Nuoro has confirmed that it will continue to monitor the situation and maintain discussions with mayors and operational structures, reserving the right to activate the CCS depending on the situation's evolution.
During the meeting, the importance of ensuring efficient radio communications between operational units was reiterated, ensuring that equipment is properly tuned to the channels established by the Regional Civil Protection Plan.
Following the meeting, a meeting was held with the Department of Civil Protection and the national agencies, all of which are on pre-alert for further developments. The Directorate General of Civil Protection will continue to monitor the situation in close coordination with the Prefectures, Municipalities, and all regional authorities.
(Unioneonline)
