Only the Grand Canal, Venice's biggest and most famous waterway, can still take water traffic, and the falling canal levels have given rise to terms such as "ghost town" and "desert" in local papers.
"The phenomenon is due to low pressure, that is, the good weather that coincides with the syzygy, the alignment of the moon, earth and sun," said Venice's tides office.
The new moon this week has helped push water levels to their lowest point in more than a decade, nearly 80 cm (2.5 feet) below sea level, it said. The lowest fall on record was 1.21 metres below sea level in 1934.
The city assured tourists that water levels would soon start rising again, restoring the romantic look they expect, and reminded Venetians.





Categories
Print Article
Send to a friend