Premier Giorgia Meloni was in Sicily on Wednesday to see for herself the devastation caused last week by Cyclone Harry and the “critical” situation in the town of Niscemi which was hit by a huge landslide on Sunday.

Sunday’s landslide left many homes perilously perched on the precipice of a cliff, meaning around 1,500 people had to be evacuated, and Protection Department Chief Fabio Ciciliano said on Tuesday that the hill Niscemi lies on is slowly sliding towards the plain where the city of Gela is.

Meloni did a helicopter flyover of areas affected by the violent storms brought by Cyclone Harry, the damage toll of which has crossed the two-billion-euros mark, Sicilian Governor Renato Schifani said on Wednesday.

She then went to Niscemi town hall and met local officials, including Mayor Mayor Massimiliano Conti.

Cyclone Harry also wreaked havoc in Calabria and Sardinia, as well as in Sicily, and Meloni’s government declared a state of emergency in the three regions last week.

Niscemi, which has a population of around 27,000 people, is located some 28 kilometres from the city of Gela, which is on the coast.

“The whole hill is falling onto the Gela plain,” Ciciliano said on Tuesday “The landslide is (still) fully active and the situation is critical.

“There are homes that can no longer be saved and it will be necessary to define a plan for the definitive relocation of the people who lived there”.

The same area was also hit by a devastating landslide 29 years ago.