After yesterday's storms and those of the night that lapped the central western coasts, with daily cumulative amounts of 135mm in Genoa Sant'Ilario and estimates well above 200mm in the sea in front of the Ligurian capital, a brief respite from the bad weather this afternoon in Liguria. But tomorrow a vast depression between France and England will bring a new worsening, extensive and structured, with stationary and persistent storm phenomena associated with abundant quantities in the center of the region. The storms will be accompanied by widespread rainfall which will give rise to high cumulative rainfall in all warning areas, with at least moderate intensity.
For this reason Arpal has issued a new orange alert which will be triggered in central western Liguria from 7am tomorrow until midnight. "The contrast between the sirocco and the tramontana - explain the experts - will be the cause of the stationarity of the storm phenomena due to which in some areas of the region it could rain for over 15 consecutive hours". The winds from the South-East will be gale-force in the central-East and will favor a marked increase in swell with rough seas and possible storm surges on all coasts from the afternoon. "The orange warning for thunderstorms signals the possibility of strong thunderstorms, capable of pouring a lot of rain in a short time: when they are organized and persistent, they remain in the same area for a long time, with important effects on the ground. They are among the most dangerous weather phenomena, which must be paid the utmost attention", underlined Arpal.
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Schools of all levels in Genoa will therefore remain closed on Tuesday 20 October 2026 due to the orange weather alert. The decision was taken in the afternoon by the municipal operations center (Coc), meeting at Matitone, on the basis of the forecasts of the regional agency for the protection of the Ligurian environment (Arpal) and the conditions of the territory, already affected by the heavy rainfall over the weekend, especially in the eastern area of the city. The suspension concerns exclusively teaching activities: the institutes will remain open for administrative functions. The Coc also clarified that the provision is definitive and will not be subjected to further evaluation. Similar measures have been adopted or are being defined in other Ligurian municipalities affected by the alert, including Bogliasco, Alassio and Finale Ligure.
The operations room of the regional Civil Protection has issued a yellow alert for strong thunderstorms in central-western Tuscany and the Archipelago, valid from 3pm until midnight on Tuesday 20 October. The President of the Region, Eugenio Giani, announced this on social media. The first rainfall is expected in the afternoon, but it will be especially from the evening that the phenomena could become more frequent and intense. On the archipelago, along the coast and in the surrounding western areas, locally violent thunderstorms are possible, accompanied by downpours and strong gusts of wind. The worsening could also continue on Wednesday 21 October, when the most intense phase of the disturbance is expected.
In addition to Liguria and Tuscany, critical weather conditions are also forecast for Tuesday 20 October in various Italian regions.
In Emilia-Romagna the yellow alert for thunderstorms and hydrogeological risk will mainly concern the Apennine and hilly areas, as well as the plains and the areas of Piacenza and Parma. In Lazio, critical issues due to thunderstorms have been reported in much of the regional territory, including Rome, the Tiber basin and the Apennine areas; a hydraulic risk alert is also foreseen in the northern coastal basins.
In Umbria, the yellow warning for thunderstorms will affect all the main regional areas, from the Tiber basin to the Trasimeno, up to the Nera and Chiascio sectors. In Sardinia, however, the areas affected include Iglesiente, Campidano, the Flumendosa-Flumineddu basins and Logudoro. A yellow alert for hydrogeological risk is also expected in Piedmont, in the areas of Scrivia, Valle Tanaro, Toce, Valsesia, Cervo-Chiusella and Belbo-Bormida. In Liguria, outside the areas affected by the orange alert, the yellow alert level for hydrogeological risk will concern the Ponente and Levante sea basins.
