ITALY has been battered by brutal floods after a wave of torrential rainfall swamped vast parts of the north.
Streets and railways erupted into rivers and hundreds of school children had to be rescued from the rampaging waters.
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North-western Italy swallowed the worst of the weather, with orange alerts issued for parts of Lombardy and Liguria on Sunday, but the capital Milan has also suffered with severe rainfall on Monday night.
In Meda, Lombardy, cars were picked up by the surging water and taken away down the streets.
One clip shows the powerful river depositing a car on top of another – while a railway track can be seen full to the brim with gushing brown water.
The Seveso river which runs through Milan burst its banks and completely submerged several neighbourhoods, and the Lambro is also threatening to overflow in the city.
Specialised flood vehicles had to rescue around 300 children stranded in schools in the Niguarda district of Milan.
In Cabiate, Como province, fire crews plucked residents from swamped neighbourhoods by winching them up to helicopters after the Tarò River overflowed.
They also combed the streets checking submerged vehicles for anyone trapped inside.
Landslides and flooding have brought chaos to the Bormida Valley in Lugaria, and most of the region’s schools have been forced to shut.
Water spurted up through manhole covers along the busy Via Vittorini road – where flood defences have been erected to protect homes.
Milan’s Palace of Justice has been forced to shut down after water pooled inside and the power had to be turned off.
Milan’s Civil Protection Councilor, Marco Granelli, urged all residents to exercise “maximum caution”.
More than 70 emergency calls have been put into the fire service amid the watery mayhem.
The flooding was caused by heavy storms which swept across the north of the country.
A German tourist is currently reported to be missing in Piedmont after flash flooding, with a search operation underway.
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Officials said more than 650 emergency interventions were carried out across Lombardy, with over 200 firefighters mobilized.
A mother and her 10-month-old baby were rescued from the roof of their car in Monza and Brianza province after being trapped by floodwaters.
In Florence, a pine tree collapsed onto a parked van, though no injuries were reported.
Weather forecasters said unstable conditions would continue in the coming days, with thunderstorms forecast for central and northern Italy and temperatures expected to fall.
Heavy rainfall could also extend to southern regions over the weekend.
Italy’s flood trouble follows similar scenes in Spain.
One child died as torrential floods continue to wreak havoc across a Spanish holiday hotspot.
Horror weather sparked travel chaos with flights cancelled and trains abandoned due to fallen trees on the tracks – as officials warn of more rain to come.
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