News to use

Strong southern winds pushed the Adriatic Sea into Venice this week, submerging parts of the lagoon city after an unusually high tide caused the worst flooding in 20 years.

Last week, the water level was high enough to flood the city’s St. Mark’s Square and other low-lying areas. Tourists and locals waded through the piazza in boots as alarms warned of the latest bout of “acqua alta.”

“We’ve been flooded with calls from people who want to cancel their reservation because they think Venice is under water,” said Giuseppe Mazzarella, a receptionist at the Hotel Monaco & Grand Canal. “We reassured them that it’s all over ... and even if it happens again, it’s quite fun for tourists.”

Venice is building a system of barriers that would rise from the seabed to ease the effect of high tides; the $5.5 billion project is not expected to be completed until 2010.