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Meloni Visits Niscemi as Active Landslide Forces 1,500 to Evacuate

Officials now warn the moving slope will force permanent relocations.

Overview

  • Authorities say houses perched on the edge are uninhabitable and some families will be permanently relocated as the ground continues to shift.
  • The landslide spans roughly 4 kilometers with a 150-meter no‑go zone in place, and teams are using drones and satellite imagery to monitor movement.
  • The government declared a state of emergency for Sicily, Sardinia and Calabria, releasing an initial €100 million as regional damage estimates reach up to €2 billion.
  • More than 1,500 residents have been evacuated to shelters or relatives’ homes, with no deaths or injuries reported.
  • Experts link the collapse to Cyclone Harry’s heavy rains on Niscemi’s sand and clay plateau, a terrain that also failed in a major 1997 landslide.