Naples swamped by mud after torrential rains: clashes and a sinkhole emerge

A mud river swept through Naples' streets after torrential rains, inundating basements and ground-floor apartments. The Vomero district bore the brunt of the flooding. Residents in despair attempted to safeguard their belongings by clearing out the accumulated mud.

Streets like Via Solimena and Via Morghen in the Vomero district were engulfed by mud on Saturday, as reported by the Italian news agency ANSA. The deluge, filled with mud and debris, seeped into basements, commercial spaces, and ground-level residences due to the heavy rainfall.

Faced with rising waters, alarmed residents scrambled to salvage what they could, manually removing the mud. Compounding the disaster, the sewage system failed in places, and the water supply was disrupted for some homes, reports the Italian website TGCOM24. Firefighting squads were deployed, using water pumps in their efforts, though technicians on-site couldn’t predict when normal services would resume.

On the streets swamped with mud, employees from the municipal sewage firm ABC (Acqua Bene Comune) encountered frustrated residents, leading to verbal confrontations, as the Virgilio website details. Locals lamented that the flooding stemmed from a neglected sewage system, arguing, "In this area, the sewage system had never been repaired or maintained." They claimed the city only executed superficial repairs.

It was not the first calamity for Via Morghen, which was one of the streets overwhelmed on Saturday. A massive sinkhole emerged on February 21, devouring a tree and two vehicles. Naples Mayor Gaetano Manfredi acknowledged the long-term neglect of the sewer system at that time, per ANSA. "We are launching a monitoring project for the sewer and water systems to facilitate preventative maintenance," he announced.

Source: ANSA, TGCOM24, Virgilio