SIENA, Italy, Oct. 22 (UPI) -- Heavy rain in parts of northern and central Italy triggered landslides and power outages and were blamed for at least one death, officials said Tuesday.
Officials said a man died Monday near Siena when the truck he was driving ran off a bridge into a canal, ANSA reported.
In a heroic rescue, fire fighters saved a woman in the Siena who clung to a tree for five hours. She was trying to lead her horses to safety when she was carried off by strong river currents, officials said.
Rivers splashed over their banks, forcing the evacuation of about 100 families while landslides buried roads, isolating mountain villages, ANSA said.
The Italian community of Fiumetto received more than 5 inches of rain in 14 hours, officials said.
A state of emergency in Tuscany was declared Tuesday as officials began assessing the damage.
Energy company ENEL said it recorded 15,925 lightning strikes during a 24-hour period.
