Heavy rains triggering flash floods in urban environment: A case from Chiavari (Genoa metropolitan area, Italy)

Between 10th and 11th November, 2014, heavy rainfall over a short period fell on the eastern Genoa metropolitan area. The geohydrological event had important ground effects, among them the simultaneous flooding of Entella and Rupinaro streams, in Chiavari city. In lower Lavagna valley, the main tributary of the Entella, a landslide caused two casualties, while serious damage to buildings and infrastructures were registered in Chiavari\u2019s Old Town and in the nearby communities of Carasco and Cogorno. In the Entella basin, the rainfall peaked at 60 mm/hour and accumulated 220 mm in six hours. The levels of the streams rose instantly, showing concentration times of less than an hour. The Entella rose seven meters, flooding Carasco, Cogorno, and the Caperana neighborhood of Chiavari. Flash flooding of the Rupinaro stream caused water to rise to 1.5 m in Chiavari\u2019s historic core. Analyses were carried out of the weather conditions and the ground effects of the events; in addition, studies were made of the main causes of the geo-hydrological risk. In particular, variations in climate and uncontrolled urban development were the cause of increased geo-hydrological hazards and vulnerability of this area, historically subject to flooding. Such conditions of risk are unacceptable, and urgent measures are required to mitigate the effects of heavy rainfall events

Geological landscape and stone heritage of the genoa walls Urban park and surrounding area (Italy)

In the last 20 years the conservation and enhancement of cultural and landscape heritage sites have been increasingly promoted by specific national and international laws. Thematic maps from scientific studies facilitate the public promotion and understanding of landscape and cultural heritage. This work introduces a novel geological landscape and stone heritage map of the Genoa Walls Urban Park (1:10.000 scale). The park is located in the immediate surroundings of Genoa city centre and it includes a complex system of historical fortifications. Today the park is frequented by hikers, mountain bikers and tourists. The map shows three different elements of the park: lithological and geomorphological elements, cultural and landscape heritage sites and the trail network. This map offers new insights into the way in which the park authority can promote the sustainable fruition of a highly valuable area, characterised by landscape and historical interest next to one of the largest historical centres of Europe, part of which is inscribed in the list of Unesco World Heritage Sites

Geomorphological Landscape Research and Flood Management in a Heavily Modified Tyrrhenian Catchment

Since the nineteenth century, most urban catchments in Europe have been subject to significant landscape variations. These modifications have been caused by population change and the transition through rural, industrial and post-industrial economies. Land use and rainfall regime changes, together with land use variations, are frequently associated with flood hazard increase. This paper examines geomorphological landscape changes from the nineteenth century to the present day in the Bisagno Valley, Genoa metropolitan area. The Valley is internationally known for its recurring floods: the last events with fatalities occurred in 2011 and 2014. The extent of landscape change and the history of floods were examined by combining scientific data and information from historical maps, written accounts, topographical drawings and photographs. Historical–geographical and geomorphological analyses were used to reconstruct the runoff for three different periods since 1850. Our results demonstrate that geomorphological landscape variations, including modifications of the river bed, and the abandonment of the countryside and terraces are not sustainable and have progressively allowed an increase in flooding, making it necessary to implement sustainable management policies. In particular, specific spatial urban planning and management measures are necessary in order to mitigate flood hazard and vulnerability

Next-generation sequencing approach to hyperCKemia: A 2-year cohort study

Next-generation sequencing (NGS) was applied in molecularly undiagnosed asymptomatic or paucisymptomatic hyperCKemia to investigate whether this technique might allow detection of the genetic basis of the condition

Congenital myopathies: Clinical phenotypes and new diagnostic tools

Congenital myopathies are a group of genetic muscle disorders characterized clinically by hypotonia and weakness, usually from birth, and a static or slowly progressive clinical course. Historically, congenital myopathies have been classified on the basis of major morphological features seen on muscle biopsy. However, different genes have now been identified as associated with the various phenotypic and histological expressions of these disorders, and in recent years, because of their unexpectedly wide genetic and clinical heterogeneity, next-generation sequencing has increasingly been used for their diagnosis. We reviewed clinical and genetic forms of congenital myopathy and defined possible strategies to improve cost-effectiveness in histological and imaging diagnosis

Solid Organ Transplantation During COVID-19 Pandemic: An International Web-based Survey on Resources’ Allocation

Background. Solid organ transplants (SOTs) are life-saving interventions, recently challenged by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). SOTs require a multistep process, which can be affected by COVID-19 at several phases. Methods. SOT-specialists, COVID-19-specialists, and medical ethicists designed an international survey according to CHERRIES guidelines. Personal opinions about continuing SOTs, safe managing of donors and recipients, as well as equity of resources' allocation were investigated. The survey was sent by e-mail. Multiple approaches were used (corresponding authors from Scopus, websites of scientific societies, COVID-19 webinars). After the descriptive analysis, univariate and multivariate ordinal regression analysis was performed. Results. There were 1819 complete answers from 71 countries. The response rate was 49%. Data were stratified according to region, macrospecialty, and organ of interest. Answers were analyzed using univariate- multivariate ordinal regression analysis and thematic analysis. Overall, 20% of the responders thought SOTs should not stop (continue transplant without restriction); over 70% suggested SOTs should selectively stop, and almost 10% indicated they should completely stop. Furthermore, 82% agreed to shift resources from transplant to COVID-19 temporarily. Briefly, main reason for not stopping was that if the transplant will not proceed, the organ will be wasted. Focusing on SOT from living donors, 61% stated that activity should be restricted only to "urgent"cases. At the multivariate analysis, factors identified in favor of continuing transplant were Italy, ethicist, partially disagreeing on the equity question, a high number of COVID-19- related deaths on the day of the answer, a high IHDI country. Factors predicting to stop SOTs were Europe except-Italy, public university hospital, and strongly agreeing on the equity question. Conclusions. In conclusion, the majority of responders suggested that transplant activity should be continued through the implementation of isolation measures and the adoption of the COVID-19-free pathways. Differences between professional categories are less strong than supposed

Variazione del regime delle piogge e aumento dei fenomeni alluvionali nell'area metropolitana genovese (Italia)

The Genoa Metropolitan Area is historically affected by flash floods for the meteorological conditions and city\u2019s geomorphologic arrangement. In the last years in GMA there is also an increase in flash floods due to man-made landforms and changes in rainfall regime. The research analyses the rain data collected over more than 100 years, registered by Genoa University (since 1833) and Chiavari (since 1877) stations. Furthermore, data recorded since 1932 at Isoverde and Diga Giacopiane stations allow to complete the analysis. The analysis was based on mean annual rainfall, rainy days and rainfall intensity. The annual rainfall does not show any trend, but the number of rainy days shows a negative one, statistically significant, in all selected rain gauges. As a consequence, the rate of daily rainfall shows a positive trend. The scenario above is confirmed by the analysis of maximum precipitation recorded by pluviographs for 1, 3, 6, 12 and 24 hours: all the analyzed values indicate an increase over time, which may be linked to the intensification of flood events in the recent decades

The Bisagno stream catchment (Genoa, Italy) and its major floods: geomorphic and land use variations in the last three centuries

The city of Genoa (Liguria, Italy) and the Bisagno Valley are affected by frequent floods, often with loss of human lives. Historically characterised by high flood hazards, the Bisagno Valley was recently affected by a flood event on 9 October 2014, less than three years after the tragic flood event of 4 November 2011 when six people died, including two children. In the last 50 years, four destructive floods occurred in the Bisagno Valley, in addition to some other events that caused significant damage and economic losses.This paper examines the three largest flood events in terms of intensity and ground effects which affected the Bisagno Valley in the last three centuries: the flood of 25 October 1822, well documented by contemporary sources, the flood of 8 October 1970, undoubtedly the most tragic on record, and the very recent event of 9 October 2014. For this purpose scientific and historical-geographical methodologies were adopted, the latter particularly useful for the reconstruction of the flood event of 1822 and the landscape history of the Bisagno Valley in the nineteenth century.This comparison shows that the Bisagno Valley is characterised by climatic and landform features that have been making the flood events historically common in the area. However, recent climate change and land-use variations, including some major modifications of the catchment basin, have progressively determined a decrease of the concentration time and an increase of runoff, solid transport, and flood hazard. Consequently, in recent decades a growth in the number of flood events occurred, to the extent that the Bisagno today is a famous case study on an international scale

Anthropogenic changes in the alluvial plains of the Tyrrhenian Ligurian basins

Riverbeds and floodplains in the Mediterranean area have been largely affected by anthropogenic modifications mainly with incision, narrowing and channeling of the riverbed. In many cases these changes have also involved the river network, from braided to single thread. The Ligurian coastal floodplains are historically affected by flooding. In recent decades, an increase in floods has been observed either for the variation of the rainfall regime and for man-made landforms that influenced the geomorphological processes. This paper provides a first analysis of the morphological evolution of the \u2018floodplain-riverbed\u2019 system in the recent past in Ligurian Tyrrhenian basins. Human activities have modified the environment of the coastal floodplains: in all the analyzed cases the narrowing and the culverting of the riverbed have been found above all in the terminal stretch. Other changes concern diversion of watercourses and progradation of the coastline due to embankment. In many cases, the extent of the changes obliterated the presence of watercourses, reducing or eliminating the perception of risk. The knowledge of anthropic changes should therefore be used as a management and planning tool in the framework of risk reduction activities

Role of rainfall intensity and urban sprawl in the 2014 flash flood in Genoa City, Bisagno catchment (Liguria, Italy)

Flash floods are typical for the Mediterranean region, however they have been recurring at increasing frequency over the past few decades especially over the Italian Peninsula. The region of Genoa has recently moved into the international spotlight due to frequent and disastrous flash floods of the Bisagno River and its tributaries as a result of intense autumn rainfall and dense floodplain urbanization. The last flood events even caused loss in human lives, with 6 casualties in 2011 and 1 in 2014. However, it has not yet been investigated whether the increase in these flash flood events is due to a change in rainfall regime or due to urban expansion in areas prone to flash floods. This study investigates the meteorological conditions and the ground effects of the Bisagno River flash flood of October 9th, 2014 in the city of Genoa. Application of a Standard Anomaly Index and a Cluster Analysis reveals a positive trend in intense and short-duration rainfall recorded in the Bisagno Valley for the period of 1945\u20132016. Urban sprawl in the catchment, assessed through a multi-temporal cartographic and photographic comparison, highlights the progressive and total consumption of land in the floodplain. In the river basin surrounding Genoa the risk of flash floods has increased, both due to a change in rainfall regime and associated increase in discharge but also due to increased vulnerability caused by progressive urban expansion and land use change, including in particular transformations of the Bisagno riverbed. The results obtained demonstrate the need for urgent action to mitigate flood risk by introducing, amongst other measures, a citizen observatory for early warning of flash floods