VENICE RUNS DRY: Gondolas stranded in mud just two months after severe flooding

Low tides have left canals in Venice almost dry, just two months after severe flooding left much of the Italian city under water.

Just weeks after serious flooding caused widespread damage, the famous canals of Venice have been left almost completely dry due to exceptionally low tides.

Two months ago the high tide in Venice peaked at 187cm (6.14ft), leaving around 70% of the lagoon city centre under salt water. The flooding left the water level at its highest in more than 50 years and there was a race against time to prevent precious artworks being lost.

Venice, November last year: Toto Bergamo Rossi, director of the cultural foundation Venetian Heritage, called the flooding “a prolonged emergency.”

But at high tide on Saturday the city was a very different sight, with its famous gondolas and boats almost beached at the bottom of canals. Hotel bookings in the city reportedly dropped by 40% following November’s flooding, the worst since 1966, which left visitors wading through water.

The city, which is built on a collection of 118 small islands, is navigated by canals and more than 400 bridges. It has a population of just over 260,000 people but millions of tourists visit every year.

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Written by

Tony Winterburn

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