Summer was interrupted by bad weather in central-southern Italy. Last weekend, temperatures have been exceptionally low, 10°C below the period average. With the drop in temperatures, a Flash Storm brought the snow back on the Abruzzo mountains (Gran Sasson and even Altopiano delle Rocche). Strong rain hit the Bari area, especially along the coast and in the Bisceglie, Giovinazzo, Molfetta, Ruvo di Puglia and Terlizzi area. Between 50 and 60 mm of rain fell in just a few hours, causing many problems. Flooded melon fields Farm owner Michele Manicone explains that "our 3 hectare melon field was completely flooded (see photo above) and other crops were also partly damaged. Other sandy areas along the coast were spared. The rain started on the 15th and continued throughout 16th July. Other farms reported a lot of damage. My neighbour had just planted around four hectares of tomatoes and his fields are still under half a metre of water." Michele is hoping the state of natural disaster will be declared. "I would like to stress the fact that the problems have not been caused by the rain but rather by the poor management of the drainage canal, which has not been cleaned in 10 years. €200 thousand had been destined to the reparation of its margins a couple of years ago, but nothing happened." Flooded crops Manicone has been operating on open fields for four years and sells its products on the fresh market. "We produce melons, watermelons, tomatoes, peppers and aubergines. We also have a shop in Lido del Sole. We also produce Camone and chocolate-coloured tomatoes for direct sales." The company was also testing new tomato varieties. "We had planted around 10,000 plants, which were ready for harvesting, but everything has been destroyed." Coldiretti: €14 billion damage in 10 years This weather is due to climate change. We are passing from periods of draught to floods and intense rainfall with hailstorms. Over the past few years, Italian agriculture had to endure €14 billion worth of damage. Source - www.freshplaza.com