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Venice Flood Samage to St. Mark's Cathedral Totals Millions

Associated Press

   VENICE, ITALY - "Every stone is a treasure,'' says the technical
   director of St. Mark's Basilica's vestry board, indicating the prized
   gold-leaf mosaics overhead, the inlaid stone pavement and the marble
   clad walls of the 923-year-old masterpiece.

   And many are vulnerable to the infiltration of sea water during the
   lagoon city's ever-higher tides.

   Constructed atop two previous churches on a site that early Venetians
   believed was among the most secure in the Canal City, St. Mark's
   Basilica suffered at least 5 million euros ($5.5 million) in damage
   during last month's devastating great tides. The first, on Nov. 12, was
   the highest in 53 years, followed by two above 1.5 meters (4.9 feet), a
   series of severe inundations never before recorded.

   Though the highest was seven centimeters less than the famed 1966 flood
   of 1.94 meters, St. Mark's chief caretaker, Carlo Alberto Tesserin,
   said, ''We say this was the worst.''

   Unlike other natural disasters, like, say, an earthquake that leaves
   images of collapsed bell towers and fallen walls, fresh damage from the
   Venice floods is so far not visible to the naked eye.

   ''Someone who comes to Venice to see the high water, and who goes to
   St. Mark's Square the next day, sees tables in the square, says, `Hey,
   look, the orchestra is playing. Nothing is wrong here.' While, in
   reality, what is hidden, is everything we have verified in these
   days,'' said Tesserin, who submitted the damage estimate earlier this
   month to city and national officials.

   Peaking at 1.87 meters (6.14 feet) above sea level, last months' great
   tide was accompanied by wind gusts of up to 120 kph (around 75 mph)
   that pushed the waters even higher, flooding through the windows in St.
   Mark's crypt of patriarchs. The gale-force gusts buffeted the
   Basilica's domes, tearing away lead tiles, Tesserin said. Both
   floodwaters entering from the windows and the ripping away of lead
   tiles were firsts in the Basilica's history.

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