'It's shameful and I won't pay it': flood-hit Italians rage against insurance call

The destruction in northern Italy has ignited debate in a country where just 6% of homes are insured against natural disasterIt was 2am when the parish priest, Giovanni Samor?, was woken by a phone call from the mayor of Traversara ordering him to start ringing the church bells. The traditional call now forms part of the civil protection procedure deployed by many Italian towns. Its aim: to warn residents of impending calamity.As torrential rain pounded the village, Samor? sprang into action, a task he compares to "sounding the death knell". It worked: the evacuation of Traversara's 480 residents was swift and, despite the priest's foreboding, there were no deaths. Continue reading...