VENICE: An exceptionally high tide hit Venice again on Friday just three days after the city suffered its worst flooding in more than 50 years, leaving squares, shops and hotels once more inundated.

Mayor Luigi Brugnaro closed access to the submerged St Mark’s Square and issued an international appeal for funds, warning that the damage caused by this week’s floods could rise to one billion euros.

Local authorities said the high tide peaked at 154cm, slightly below expectations and significantly lower than the 187cm level reached on Tuesday, which was the second highest tide ever recorded in Venice.

But it was still enough to leave 70 per cent of the city under water, fraying the nerves of locals who faced yet another large-scale clean-up operation.

“We have been in this emergency for days and we just can’t put up with it anymore,” said Venetian resident Nava Naccara.

The government declared a state of emergency for Venice on Thursday, allocating 20 million euros to address the immediate damage, but Brugnaro predicted the costs would be vastly higher and launched a fund to help pay for repairs.

“Venice was destroyed the other day. We are talking about damage totalling a billion euros,” he said in a video.

Sirens wailed across the city from the early morning hours, warning of the impending high tide.

Published in Dawn, November 16th, 2019