Woman dies in Gaeta as Italy buffeted by storms

An elderly woman drowned in the southern Lazio coast town of Gaeta late on Wednesday because of a fierce downpour that was part of a wave of heavy rains and strong winds that continues to lash much of Italy on Thursday. The 82-year-old was swept away by floodwaters while standing in a road. Her husband survived after becoming wedged between a car and a tree and is now being treated for hypothermia. Furthermore, a 34-year-old man died in Naples in the early hours of Thursday after losing control of his vehicle, in another incident reportedly linked to the bad weather. Southern Lazio bore the brunt of the storms on Halloween night, with flooding and evacuations reported in the Frosinone area, which is still struggling to recover from similar bad weather last weekend. The seaside town of Fiumicino further north also took a beating, with homes flooded in some areas. The southern region of Campania was also badly affected, with strong winds and tree falls reported in the Naples area and flooding and evacuations near Salerno further south. Ferry and hydrofoil services between Naples and the Gulf of Naples islands were suspended as waves measuring up to 3.5 m thrashed Capri. Early on Thursday limited services resumed to the islands of Ischia and Procida. In the north of the country high water was reported in Venice and the surrounding area. In Chioggia water levels reached the 1.62 m mark, making local floodwater defence systems useless.