Italy's Premier Giorgia Meloni on Wednesday visited the Sicilian town of Niscemi, where dozens of houses have been left teetering on the edge of a cliff after a massive landslide hit the area.
Houses on the hill of Niscemi, a small town in south-central Sicily, have been gradually collapsing toward the plain below, forcing more than 1,500 people to be evacuated. The disaster occured on Sunday evening but continued to spread on Monday.
"There are homes on the edge of the landslide that are uninhabitable," Civil Protection head Fabio Ciciliano told reporters on the site, adding that affected residents would be relocated.
Meloni on Wednesday morning flew over the area hit by the landslide by helicopter before landing in Niscemi to meet local authorities and assess the situation.
On Monday, the government had declared a state of emergency for Sicily, Sardinia and Calabria, the three southern regions worst hit by violent storms in recent days.
The government has set aside about 100 million euros to address the initial needs of the areas affected, but local authorities have estimated the total damage at over 2 billion euros.
"The damage reported from Cyclone Harry has risen to two billion. The situation is evolving with increasing severity," Ciciliano said. "Niscemi is experiencing a landslide towards the Gela plain. The entire hill is collapsing and the situation is critical."
Extreme weather events have frequently hit the Italian territory in recent years. Floods have devastated cities across the country, killing dozens of people and highlighting the serious risks related to climate change.
