Adige River Embankments Eroded After Floodwaters, Concerns Rise
The floodwaters passed last Sunday have left new, deep marks on the banks of the Adige River, and in the Lowlands, concern over weather forecasts has already returned. “The latest wave has further compromised the critical points of the embankments that we already knew,” explained yesterday Gianni Sambugaro, Hydraulic Officer of the Magistrato alle Acque, “though fortunately it passed without creating overly serious situations.” “Between Saturday and Sunday,” he continues, “it was still necessary to carry out four emergency interventions because situations had arisen that could have become dangerous. Two spring sources emerged in Angiari, one in Begosso di Terrazzo, and near Legnago, in the hospital area, a spring resurgent was recorded.”
All these incidents were caused by water infiltrations, which must be added to the already known cases of embankment deterioration. These deterioration cases became evident with the mid-October flood and were progressively worsened due to the weather conditions of the past week. There are still nine segments where the master dikes, the last and decisive barrier against the river’s waters, have suffered embankment failures and erosion in the Lowlands. Nine points scattered among the municipalities of Ronco, Roverchiara, Angiari, and Terrazzo have been under continuous 24-hour surveillance in recent days, revealing increasingly significant issues.
State of the embankments and monitoring of critical points
“At Scardevara in Ronco,” continues Sambugaro, “there has been a failure of at least a hundred meters, while in Roverchiara, the same problem affects a stretch of at least 160 meters. In Nichesola in Angiari and Begosso in Terrazzo, the areas of the embankment affected by erosive phenomena are more than one, with widths ranging from 100 to 200 meters. Additionally, there are slipages of the canal banks and substantial erosion of the floodplains, although our priority remains the assessment of the master dikes’ conditions at this stage.”
The ongoing rains that have saturated the embankments and the problems caused by water pressure have contributed in recent days to weakening, at least in part, their stability. This fact keeps the alert level high, especially since weather forecasts do not provide reassuring news. Although the lower temperatures are a positive element, snow is forecasted instead of rain on the hilly areas, and there is talk of less intense precipitation than in recent days. We also have to consider the current condition of the water system.
“Unfortunately,” confirms Sambugaro, “in the face of sustained rains, the situation downstream would become difficult to manage. The reservoirs are now full, and we will need to consider lowering their levels as well. The entire network is saturated. Therefore, while it was possible to implement some corrective measures during the flood over the weekend, finding alternative solutions of some sort would now be unthinkable.” In the event of new large masses of water reaching the plains, there would be no containment measures other than the embankments.
And exactly for today, should the weather conditions materialize as forecasted and the water reach downstream, a check will be made to see if the embankments can hold.
Luca Fiorin