A tornado hit Sicily. Much destruction on the island

Local media reported that two tornadoes appeared off the coast of Marsala, located in the province of Trapani in Sicily, on Friday morning. They moved from the sea to the land.

Footage shown on social media shows a school in Marsala with broken windows and a partially collapsed ceiling. In other parts of the city, overturned cars and trucks lie in the streets. Many buildings were damaged, also in the neighboring towns of Petrosino and Mazara del Vallo.

Two people who were surprised by the tornado while driving were taken to hospital in a serious condition, reports Reuters.

The tornado caused panic among residents, the agency adds.

According to experts, it was an unprecedented event in the history of Sicily.

It was almost like an American tornado, we haven't seen something so violent here since the beginning of time, Salvatore Cocina, head of the Sicilian civil defense agency, told Reuters.

The effect of a hot summer?

At the beginning of September, this institution issued a warning that the hot summer had led to heat accumulation, which could cause extreme weather phenomena in the fall.

There is a growing problem of extreme weather phenomena, characteristic of recent years due to the climate crisis, Cocina said.

The president of the Sicily region, Renato Schifani, promised to allocate special funds to fight the crisis.

A warning for possible extreme weather events continues on Saturday as rain and storms continue to hit Sicily.