Po River Recedes as Flood Emergency Eases; Bridges and Railways Reopen
The return of the Po river to its bed continues. Yesterday, the Borgoforte bridge was reopened, while Viadana, Dosolo, and San Benedetto remain closed.
Starting today, the Verona-Modena and Parma-Brescia railway lines are also operational again. Normality is gradually returning, although the emergency in our province will persist until Monday morning.
The alert level remains high due to the ongoing threat of additional dikes breaching under the enormous volume of water pressing against the banks. Last night, work resumed at Borgoforte on the Chiavica to prevent a collapse of the structure.
Reopenings and the school situation
Schools in the municipalities that had imposed closures are scheduled to reopen tomorrow, while in Ostiglia, water has receded, though it is non-potable and only for part of the day.
The traffic situation is nearly returning to normal, although concerns remain regarding the San Benedetto bridge. Its reopening depends on an inspection scheduled for tomorrow by Anas.
Inspection and repairs on the San Benedetto bridge
A panel of technical experts will deliver the final decision regarding the resumption of traffic on the structure, which is currently undergoing consolidation works on the piers in the riverbed and the spans.
Problems at bridges and closures
Issues also persist at the bridge between Viadana and Brescello, due to the closure of the bank in Reggio Emilia territory, and at the Dosolo-Guastalla bridge, where a drifting barge struck one of the piers.
In both cases, the structures are expected to reopen during the night between today and Monday, though the Viadana bridge might experience a delay of up to 24 hours.
Water levels trends
Regarding the river water levels, a general decline is observed, albeit slowly, with a decrease of approximately 40 centimeters over nine hours.
Upstream from Piacenza, the river is even at low flow, and in Cremona, the river has receded more than two meters below the safety level.
The emergency in Mantova cannot be fully resolved before tonight. Starting tomorrow, if this decline continues as expected, the flood control services operated by the Magistrato del Po are expected to be demobilized after ten days.
Flooded zones and cleanup operations
The same applies to the Crisis Unit established at the Prefettura, which has operated uninterrupted for over a week, 24 hours a day.
After the slow decrease in water levels, the flooded zones will need to be cleaned up. The sanitation of homes in the Po morto riverbank area in San Benedetto will most likely be entrusted to volunteers from the Brescia Civil Protection, who have set up an operational base in the coastal municipality and stand ready with personnel and equipment.
Resumption of activities and water conditions
Finally, in Ostiglia, water has returned, but it remains non-potable and only for certain hours of the day, after the aqueduct wells, located in the floodplain zone, were submerged by the Po’s floodwaters.
After about ten nights spent on the banks and days spent in feverish search for weak points or critical spots, operators and volunteers will be able to rest easy once again.