Florence on Friday is
marking the 50th anniversary of the devastating flood of the
River Arno in 1966, which claimed dozens of lives and caused
incalculable damage to the Tuscan city's rich heritage.
"We must not love in fear of the river," Florence Mayor
Dario Nardella told Rai radio.
"You have to acknowledge that little was done in terms of
prevention for 48 years. But things have turned around over the
last two years".
However, Gerald Galloway, a University of Maryland
engineer and head of an international panel of experts that
assessed the measures need to protect Florence should the Arno
burst its banks again, said the city is still vulnerable.
"The city remains in serious danger of flooding and this
risk is set to increase every day if we don't intervene,"
Galloway said.
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