As predicted, the tide in Venice has now started receding. The peak is now 1.50 metres above the average sea level, from the initial 1.87 (6ft).

Friday 16 November Venice Municipality’s Tide Forecasting and Reporting Centre of Civil Protection issued a bulletin predicting a new peak of 1.60 metres for Sunday 17 at 1.30pm, followed by an improvement from Monday.

Things have gone much better than that, there hasn’t been the feared new “maxi-tide” and water never reached a level over 1.50.

According to forecasts, early in the new week the phenomenon will begin to fall.

St Mark’s Square, which had been closed to pedestrians for several hours, has been reopened.

Venice slowly returns to its usual life. Schools will be reopened. The water is retreating from the campi (squares) and calli (streets), with tourists back in the historic centre, hunting for selfies with the background of flooded Venice. The service of the vaporetti waterbuses is being resumed. In some areas, like Campo Santo Stefano, only large puddles remain.

The strange phenomenon of “high water tourism” has been witnessed, with people coming to Venice just to see this city unique in the world during “acqua alta” and visitors being photographed walking through water up to their calves.

On social networks messages, especially audio, have become viral, with alleged alarmist predictions of tidal peaks. Venice’s municipal administration (city authority) has warned: “These are completely groundless content. Citizens are invited to enquire only through official channels… [Venice municipal authority will monitor] the existence of any fake messages, also evaluating the possibility of proceeding with complaints to the Judicial Authority for procuring an alarm”.

This has been the greatest flood in Venice for 53 years, since the one of 1966, which, despite “climate change” claims, still holds the record of the worst catastrophe of this kind in Venice.

Still, the recent high water has caused untold damage to Venice.

The mayor of Venice, Luigi Brugnaro, has said that, even before knowing the exact details, the cost should be over one billion euros, adding: “The city will rise again, Venetians are on their knees only while praying“.

Photo by Wolfgang Moroder. [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)]