Venice stays dry at high tide once again thanks to new flood barrier

Venice: Venice was defended from high tide for the second time on Thursday 15 October thanks to its new ‘Mose’ flood-barrier system, which stopped the ‘acqua alta’ from entering the canal city.

Ahead of today’s expected high tide of 135 cm – a level that would normally result in around half the city being left underwater – Venice switched on the computerised barrier system again, after its first success on 3 October.

The 78 mobile dams that separate the city’s lagoon from the Adriatic Sea rose above the water to seal off the three inlets at Lido, Malamocco and Chioggia, and when the tide’s peak arrived at mid-morning, the squares and alleys remained dry.

The multi-billion-euro scheme, designed in 1984, has been plagued by corruption scandals and multiple cost overruns since work began in 2003.

The project’s delays came under sharp scrutiny last November when Venice was devastated by ‘acqua alta’ high waters submerging the lagoon city in the second-highest tide since records began in 1923.

The Mose system is designed to protect Venice from tides of up to three metres, however some experts believe this may not be high enough to cope with future high tides if sea levels continue to rise.

The Consorzio Venezia Nuova is responsible for overseeing the scheme on behalf of Italy’s transport ministry and the Venice Water Authority.

The project’s official title is MOdulo Sperimentale Elettromeccanico (Experimental Electromechanical Module) but it also carries a reference to the biblical prophet Moses who parted the waters of the Red Sea.