Damage to the fruit hanging on the tree was 100%, no citrus fruit is on the branches now. Damages are recorded also for tree and leaves, quite integrally torn-off.
The current citrus campaign undergoes the last mortal blow, resulting in the worst campaign ever: climate changing, truck drivers' strike, snow and frost in late January, volcanic ash and wind in February and now this hailstorm.
Companies ask for timely and appropriate measures for citrus cultivation and agriculture in general. Otherwise a collapse is possible with the consequent abandonment of agricultural activities.
In the central-eastern area of Sicily, 100 km per hour gusts of wind and torrential rain affected greenhouses, arboreal plants and open field crops ready for harvest. Huge damages are recorded in the nursery sector and rural building; there is also a lack of electricity. In many cases access roads to farms were destroyed due to landslips and landslides.
Sicilian Confagricoltura is already trying to quantify the damage. From first notifications, especially in the province of Ragusa, damages amount to several million Euro.