A team of 15 emergency response specialists formed the B-FAST that Belgium despatched to Italy on Wednesday night. The team was equipped with two "super pumps" to be used in the area hit by severe flooding last week, said Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden.
Belgium's offer came after Italy had provided similar assistance two years ago after the floods in Wallonia, which killed 41 people.
"The recent storm leaves a trail of destruction in Italy. B-FAST will send a team of experts and two super pumps to the affected area tomorrow," Verlinden wrote on Twitter. "In this way, we are supporting local relief workers and showing solidarity with the Italian people."
The "super pumps" are part of a so-called "Extreme High Capacity Pumping module", a system of two pumping units which together can pump away about 100,000 litres of water per minute. As well as water, the module can also pump away mud.
The Belgian mission will last about ten days, depending on the needs on the ground, and is partly funded by the European Union.
A collapsed bridge near Bologna, May 2023. Credit: Wikimedia Commons / Nick Mon
Last week, extreme rainfall led to floods and landslides in Italy. The Emilia-Romagna region in the north-east of the country was hit particularly hard: 15 people died in the storm and tens of thousands had to seek shelter elsewhere.
More than 600 roads were still closed early this week and the region estimated over the weekend that about €620 million would be needed just to repair the road network. The total damage is expected to be billions of euros. Since then, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has announced an initial support package of €2 billion.
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France, too, is sending help by providing a pump capable of pumping away some 90,000 litres of water per minute. A specialised team consisting of 40 members of the Civil Protection will operate the pump in Emilia-Romagna for at least three weeks.
Several other EU Member States have also indicated they will send aid to the disaster area: Bulgaria, Germany, Austria, Poland, Romania, Slovenia and Slovakia, among others, have promised pumping equipment to Italy.
President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen is expected in the disaster area on Thursday.
