The streets of Bardonecchia, a town near Turin, they were inundated by a thick mud after a lightning storm. A flood of mud destroyed everything in its path and some witnesses have described it as “a tsunami, but in the river”: “It looked like the end of the world“.

The authorities have also activated the alarms for this Monday since they are expected more rain in the area in the next few hours. The regional governor of Piedmont, Alberto Cirio, has indicated that there are no victims and that the five people who were initially believed to be missing they had been located. Cirio has assured that the damage was significant and that he had already contacted the national government to ask for help.

But in ground zero of the catastrophe, the houses have been reduced to rubble after the ‘tsunami’ of mud and rocks it’s done with everything. “It looked like the end of the world, at 10.15 I was watching TV. I heard a tremendous noise, I thought it was thunder, the television went off and then the crazy noise”, a neighbor from Bardonecchia told

The flood has surprised and shocked the residents and tourists of the town. And some speak of “a tsunami, but in the river”: “Full of stones, mud, we got scared and we got safe.” On the other hand, a tourist who was staying in a hotel explained “there is no water or gas” and that “you can’t eat, they haven’t even been able to drink coffee”.

Meanwhile, the emergency services work tirelessly. More than 100 people have been evacuated and the recommendation for those who have stayed is clear: “We ask the population to stay in their homes.” This has been reported by the mayoress of the town, Chiara Rossetti.

What has occurred is a phenomenon known as flash flood. Álvaro Navarro, a meteorologist for laSexta, explained that there are storms in “a large part of Central Europe”, but in Italy he has discharged a large amount of water at a very specific point, on a mountain, which has caused a landslide. The alarms in the region remain because it is expected that, in the next few hours, it will continue to rain and it is feared that what happened could happen again.