ITALY has been battered by brutal floods after a wave of torrential rainfall swamped vast parts of the north. Streets and railways erupted into rivers, trapping people in cars and houses, and hundreds of school children had to be rescued from flood waters. In Meda, Lombardy, cars were picked up by the surging water and taken away down the streets. Specialised flood vehicles had to rescue around 300 children stranded in schools in the Niguarda district of Milan. 8 Severe flooding due to heavy rainfall has destroyed homes in Blevio, Lombardy Credit: X/@BelarusInside