Five killed in storms in north and wildfires in south.

The Italian government is drawing up emergency legislation to help five regions to cope with the devastating effects of storms in the north and wildfires in the south in recent days.

The move comes after a 58-year-old woman and a 16-year-old girl were killed by falling trees in the northern Lombardy region around Milan whose regional administration has estimated the storm damage at more than €100 million.

#Incendi vegetazione #Calabria, 390 interventi dei #vigilidelfuoco. Maggiori criticità nelle province di: #ReggioCalabria, a S. Giovanni di Sambatello, Ortì, Cardeto, Bagnara; #Cosenza, sulle colline di Grisolia; #Crotone, a Strongoli, Gabella, Petilia Policastro[#25luglio 19:00] pic.twitter.com/FpDZqhn5Gd

— Vigili del Fuoco (@vigilidelfuoco) July 25, 2023

In the south, the president of Sicily has requested the government to declare a state of emergency on the island as firefighters continue to battle ferocious wildfires.

The fires have claimed the lives of three people in the Palermo area: an 88-year-old woman and a man and a woman aged 78 and 76.

In the city of Catania, in north-east Sicily, many areas have been left without electricity and running water in recent days, as temperatures soared to 47°C.

"If the world around us changes and we remain still, we will continue to mourn the dead and helplessly witness the devastation of our territory. Which by its nature is fragile and vulnerable", Italy's civil protection minister Nello Musumeci said in an interview with La Stampa newspaper on Wednesday.

Pericolosità incendi ALTA su AG, CL, EN, ME, PA, con dichiarata fase di ATTENZIONE RISCHIO INCENDI; pericolosità incendi MEDIA su CT, RG, SR, TP con dichiarata fase di PREALLERTA RISCHIO INCENDI. Previsione Rischio ONDATE DI CALORE LIVELLO 3 a Catania, LIVELLO 1 a ME e PA. pic.twitter.com/B9FglTxAE5

— Protezione Civile Sicilia (@DrpcSicilia) July 25, 2023

On Tuesday Musumeci said that Italy was experiencing "one of the most difficult days in recent decades" due to the extreme weather.

A cabinet meeting is scheduled to take place in Rome on Wednesday during which the emergency situation will be discussed, Musumeci said.

Photo Vigili del Fuoco