Orange and yellow weather alert for thunderstorms in the Central-North

The wave of bad weather hitting Italy is intensifying. For Thursday, September 10th, the Civil Protection has issued an orange weather alert for thunderstorm risk across large areas of Emilia Romagna, Marche, Tuscany, and Veneto, and a yellow alert for other parts of these regions plus Liguria, Lombardy, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Lazio, Umbria, and Sardinia.

For many of the sectors under an orange alert, a hydrogeological risk alert has also been declared. The bad weather, caused by a low-pressure vortex, is also bringing a significant drop in temperatures, especially in Northern Italy.

According to forecasts, conditions will be very unstable in the Northeast, Lombardy, Liguria, and the central regions, with frequent downpours and thunderstorms and possible episodes of hail. The South, however, will remain sunny.

The civil protection weather alert system was created to prevent damage caused by intense meteorological events. The Civil Protection Department, established in 1992, issues daily bulletins based on forecasts from meteorological services. The alerts are color-coded: yellow indicates ordinary criticality, orange moderate criticality, and red high criticality.

This specific wave of bad weather is caused by the passage of an Atlantic-origin low-pressure vortex over Italy. These disturbances are common in autumn, but can also occur at the end of summer, bringing colder and more unstable air that meets the warm, humid air present over the peninsula, generating strong thunderstorms.

The immediate consequences are the risk of flooding, landslides, damage from strong winds and hail. For this reason, the alerts also specify hydrogeological (landslides) and hydraulic (flooding) risks, urging the public to follow the instructions of local authorities.