At least 10 dead after violent storms, flooding slam into Italy

A partially sunken boat is seen at sea a day after a storm washed up several boats, in Rapallo, northern Italy, Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2018. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

MILAN – Heavy rains and high winds buffeting much of Italy have killed 10 people over two days, officials said Tuesday.

Many of the deaths were due to falling trees crashing down on cars or passers-by, but they also included a woman who was buried by mud when a landslide invaded her home near Trento in northern Italy and a man who was slammed against rocks while windsurfing in Emilia-Romagna. The other fatalities occurred in Naples, Liguria, and Lazio.

High winds created an exceptional tide in Venice on Monday, covering three-quarters of the city for the first time in a decade. Water levels were forecast Tuesday at 105 centimeters (41.3 inches), flooding 8 percent of the famed lagoon city.

The national Civil Protection Agency has issued red and orange alerts -- meaning possible "loss of life" from landslides, floods, and infrastructural damage -- due to an Atlantic storm system that has brought torrential rains and hail, electrical storms, powerful winds, and high seas to Italy from North to South. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

"It was the perfect storm during which adverse meteorological conditions contributed to the situation in the sea and winds," civil protection chief Angelo Borrelli said.

The news agency ANSA reported damage to the mosaic floors inside Venice's famed St. Mark's Basilica, where waters reached 90 centimeters (35 inches). The bronze metal doors and columns also sustained damage.

A woman cleans up debris from a flooded room a day after a storm, in Boccadasse, northern Italy, Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2018. (Luca Zennaro/ANSA via AP)

Rains flooded highways and caused a landslide that forced the temporary closure of the Brenner highway connecting Italy with Austria, while the Adige River running through Verona rose by 2 meters (6 feet) but did not overflow. In the capital, Rome, more than 100 trees were felled by high winds, and ports reported damage from the storm, including to moored boats.

Nearly 6,000 firefighters were dispatched to remove debris from roadways across the country. One firefighter was killed by a tree near Bolzano, in Alto-Adige. Schools were closed in large areas of the country for two days as a precaution.