February 2012 Snow Storm - Tuscany Italy

I have been in Italy for over thirteen years now and this is the worst snow storm I have ever encountered.  We had snow for five straight days and now even though it is no longer snowing, we are dealing with the aftermath and the roads. Temperatures are below zero and roads are icy and dangerous. Trees have fallen everywhere and our little town of Chiusi seems like a war zone. We are lucky, very lucky. We were without electricity and heat for four days but took shelter at relative's house after one day and one night without heat nor light. I have to say it was scary. We had no phones and I had only my mobile phone that had very little recharge left on it. I used it sparingly to send out messages. The only thing that worked was water, cold water and our stove range.

Here in Chiusi, our "comune" did a great job in clearing the major streets and keeping them cleared.  Peope without heat, the elderly, the sick were taken to shelters, schools, gymnasiums and to the hospital for food and beds. Our area of Valdichiana seems to be back to almost normalcy but a new snow storm is supposed to be on its way this Friday.

The rest of Italy is not so lucky. There are thousands and thousands of people without heat, without water, without food, without light. Many of these live in rural areas where they cannot get help and help cannot get to them. These people have been like this for a week.

While I  love Italy, I just cannot understand why things here are so disorganized and why it is so difficult to change.