Venice under water as complex dam system fails to activate

Residents pulled on their rubber boots once more to deal with flooding

Published: December 09, 2020 08:49 AFP and Compiled by Christian Borbon, Senior Web Editor

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Venice's St Mark's Square was under water on Tuesday after a newly installed system of mobile artificial dams failed to activate. Image Credit: AFP

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Residents - long accustomed to perennial "acqua alta" or high water events - pulled on their rubber boots once more to deal with flooding that reached a high of 1.37 metres (4.5 feet) above sea level in the afternoon. Image Credit: AFP

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The waters drowned St Mark's Square - the Renaissance city's lowest area at about one metre above sea level - and invaded the famous basilica as many shopkeepers blocked their entrances with wood panels to keep the water out. Image Credit: AFP

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A massive flood defence system called MOSE aimed at protecting Venice's lagoon during high tide was finally installed in October. Image Credit: AFP

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The network of water-filled caissons is designed to be raised within 30 minutes to create a barrier capable of resisting a water rise of three metres above normal. Image Credit: AFP

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But on Tuesday the system failed to swing into action because the forecast erroneously predicted a rise of only 1.2 metres (four feet) above sea level. Image Credit: AFP

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"To activate MOSE a bigger forecast is necessary," Venice Mayor Luigi Brugnaro told the Italian news agency Agi. "We will have to review the rules of the command post." Image Credit: AFP

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The water reached a peak of 1.87 metres (six feet) above sea level on November 12, 2019, one of the highest ever recorded. Dozens of churches with UNESCO World Heritage status were damaged. Image Credit: AFP

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The MOSE infrastructure project began in 2003 but was plagued by cost overruns, corruption scandals and delays. Image Credit: AFP

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The project has cost about seven billion euros ($8 billion), versus an original estimate of two billion. Image Credit: AFP

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