(ANSA) - ROME, JUN 8 - The recent flooding caused by extreme
weather in the northeastern Emilia Romagna region could not have
been prevented but the damage could have been contained, Civil
Protection Minister Nello Musumeci said on Thursday.
"Could the flooding have been avoided? No, on that scale it
could not have been avoided. The damage could have been
contained," said Musumeci during the Green & Blue Festival
dedicated to the environment in Milan
"In Italy and also in Emilia Romagna there has been a lack of
prevention," he added.
In mid-May floods and landslides triggered by torrential
rainfall left 15 people dead and caused billions of euros of
damage to agriculture, the economy and infrastructure.
The government of Premier Giorgia Meloni and the European Union
have made shoring up the country against natural disasters a
priority. (ANSA).
E-R flood damage could have been contained - Musumeci
'There has been a lack of prevention' says minister