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Hundreds of coffins and two chapels fell into the sea after a landslide caused a portion of a cliffside cemetery in northwestern Italy to collapse earlier this week. Workers captured footage of the walls of the traditional Italian cemetery cracking before falling over the cliffs of Camogli, a fishing village near Genoa. Photos have emerged following the Feb. 22 landslide which show the stripped cliffside as well as coffins floating in the muddy water below. The coffins fell into the Tyrrhenian Sea, which is a part of the Mediterranean Sea. A general view of the cemetery of Camogli after a landslide destroyed hundreds of graves, in Camogli, Italy, February 24, 2021. Vigili del Fuoco/Handout via REUTERS According to CNN, the Camogli cemetery, built more than 100 years ago, is situated along an area of rocky seaside cliffs. Francesco Olivari, the mayor of village, called the collapse an "unimaginable catastrophe." "This type of collapse that happened today is very hard to detect or to predict," Olivari said. "This area is subject to this type of collapse -- it's very fragile." CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP In the days leading up to the landslide, this section of the cemetery was closed and blocked off after workers spotted cracks in the walls and strange creaking noises could be heard, officials told CNN. According to a local news outlet, safety nets were in place to prevent the collapse of the cemetery. Divers from the local fire brigade, in addition to the coast guard, have been assisting in the search, the BBC reported. Tino Revello, an official with the public works department in Camogli, told the Italian news service ANSA that the erosion of the cliffside was likely "aggravated" by a number of violent storms that have struck the area in recent years. As of Wednesday afternoon, local time, about 10 of the estimated 200 coffins had been recovered, said Regional Civil Protection Assessor Giacomo Giampedrone, adding that the area below the cemetery had been blocked off to keep the coffins from floating out to sea. Recovery efforts will continue in the coming days as weather and sea conditions allow. Light south to westerly winds are expected over this portion of northwestern Italy as well as calm seas in this far northern section of the Tyrrhenian Sea. However, by Sunday, winds can become gusty as they turn out the north. In addition to strong winds, higher waves are expected, which could delay recovery efforts. A general view of the cemetery of Camogli after a landslide destroyed hundreds of graves, in Camogli, Italy, February 22, 2021. Picture taken February 22, 2021. Vigili del Fuoco/Handout via REUTERS The last time Genoa reported rainfall was a four-day stretch from Feb. 16-19 when 0.22 of an inch of rain fell. Earlier in the month, 1.93 inches of rain fell from Feb. 6-10. So far this month, Genoa has reported 2.40 inches of rain, just 63 percent of the town's normal rainfall for the month (3.82 inches). While this area is below normal for precipitation this month, this was not the case in January. The coastal town reported 8.22 inches of rainfall throughout the first month of the year. Normal rainfall for the month of January is 3.86 inches. Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, Fubo, and Verizon Fios.
