Acqua alta swamps Venice

(ANSA) - Rome, November 12 - The wave of bad weather that has hit much of Italy saw acqua alta reach 1.27 metres in Venice on Tuesday, with much of the city swamped and the narthex of St Mark's Basilica flooded.
    Levels of 100-120 cm above sea level are fairly common in the lagoon city and Venice is well-equipped to cope with its rafts of pontoon walkways.
    But anything much above 120cm risks swamping much of the city. In southern Italy, meanwhile, schools were closed in Matera and the nearby town of Metaponto was hit by a tornado.
    Gale-force winds and torrential rain is also a big problem in Calabria, where the gusts reached 113 kmph and Puglia.