A vast and growing landslide triggered by relentless rainfall from Cyclone Harry has left the hilltop town of Niscemi in southern Sicily precariously perched above a widening chasm, prompting authorities to evacuate residents, declare a state of emergency and mobilise extensive disaster response efforts. The geological disaster, which began showing signs of movement on Sunday, has now developed into a roughly four-kilometre-long rupture in the earth, threatening to engulf parts of the historic town and disrupt lives and infrastructure across the region.
Local officials confirmed that at least 1,500 inhabitants have been forced to leave their homes as the unstable hillside continues to crumble toward the town centre, with the number of evacuees expected to rise if the landslide’s advance accelerates. Civil protection authorities have widened the safety exclusion zone around the affected area in a bid to keep people out of danger while monitoring the terrain, which experts say could see further collapses in the coming days.
Mayor Massimiliano Conti described the disaster as “dramatic” and warned residents of the unpredictable hazards posed by the shifting ground. In a message shared on social media, he urged people to stay indoors if they were outside the cordoned-off areas and avoid approaching the fractured land, stressing that no injuries have been reported so far even as significant damage to homes has been confirmed. For many evacuees, the sudden upheaval has meant finding shelter with relatives or seeking refuge in community spaces such as a local sports arena after roads leading into and out of Niscemi were closed due to safety concerns.
Images and footage from the disaster zone show buildings teetering on the edge of the new ravine and sections of old roadways overridden by loosened earth, illustrating the scale of the emergency. Heavy rain over consecutive days, driven by Storm Harry’s passage through the Mediterranean, has saturated soil layers and weakened natural slopes, raising alarms among geologists and planners about the region’s vulnerability to such extreme weather events amid broader climate-linked shifts.
In response to the widespread damage across southern Italy, the national government has formally declared a one-year state of emergency covering Sicily, Calabria and Sardinia, releasing an initial €100 million from emergency funds to support rescue operations, debris removal and immediate relief efforts. Officials say this allocation will also help restore essential services interrupted by the storm and begin preliminary repairs to critical infrastructure. Regional authorities estimate the overall toll of Cyclone Harry on Sicily alone could reach as high as €1.5 billion when reconstruction and economic losses are fully tallied.
Schools throughout Niscemi have been shut, and emergency teams continue to survey the area, although persistent precipitation and unstable ground have hampered full damage assessments and recovery planning. With the situation still evolving and weather conditions remaining unsettled, local and national leaders are urging residents to heed safety warnings and prepare for ongoing disruption as efforts to stabilise the hillside and protect the town’s remaining structures intensify.
