Nov 15th 2019, Venice. A flooded St. Mark’s Square is seen reflected in an historic café window. The café itself is flooded, and sofas are placed over the tables to keep them dry.
The week of 11th – 17th November 2019 was one of the worst in Venice’s history. In 6 days, the sea water flooded the city 3 times, with tide peaks (‘acqua alta’ in Italian) reaching almost unprecedented levels.
The sea level rise, the city slow sinking process and the industrial canals dug in the past to make way for the big ships, are among the main causes of these exceptional floods. Two people lost their lives, and damages to shops and ground floor apartments have been substantial.