Buried by snow in April: accumulations of over one and a half meters between Molise and Abruzzo, the army intervenes in an isolated hotel

Spring, at the moment, doesn’t seem to want to appear in a part of our country. Cyclone Erminio has in fact been hitting Central-Southern Italy for days, with intense rains and heavy snowfalls which have put Abruzzo, Molise and Puglia in particular in difficulty. The consequences are widespread: landslides, flooding, collapsed roads and felled trees, while the firefighters carried out over 200 interventions in the most affected areas.

The most impressive situation is recorded in Capracotta, located at 1,420 meters above sea level in the province of Isernia, where around one and a half meters of snow fell in a few days. An exceptional accumulation, especially given that it is the beginning of April, even for a mountain resort accustomed to snowfall. The images spread on social media show cars completely submerged, house entrances blocked and streets transformed into white corridors.

Hotels isolated and Army intervention

The situation in Passolanciano, in the Maiella ski area, is particularly delicate, where thirteen people were left stranded in a hotel surrounded by snow. To allow the evacuation, the Ninth Alpine Regiment of the Army intervened, restoring traffic by removing fallen trees and accumulations along the road, allowing guests to leave the structure, also assisted by Anas vehicles. The Passolanciano ski facilities were closed due to heavy snow.

The snowfall affected the entire area, with four isolated hotels, as well as apartments and holiday homes unreachable. In some areas there are also districts completely cut off and difficulties in connections, while in other cases electricity and gas interruptions have been reported. Other centers in the Chieti area are isolated, including Colledimezzo and Fraine, while in some places there is no electricity and gas. In another accommodation facility, in the Santa Maria area, six guests were evacuated with tracked vehicles due to impassable roads.

An improvement is expected from tomorrow

The Civil Protection has issued a red alert for Molise and Abruzzo, reporting extreme weather conditions and high risks. A situation caused by the clash between maritime polar air coming from Scandinavia and mild currents from North Africa, a contrast that generated intense thunderstorms, late snowfalls and storm surges along the Middle Adriatic. According to forecasts, an improvement is expected from tomorrow with the return of the Azores Anticyclone, which should bring more stable conditions.

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