2 missing, thousands evacuated as storm batters northern Italy

ROME, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Emergency crews were searching for two people missing amid flash floods in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna Thursday, while thousands of others were evacuated as rivers burst their banks and flooded multiple towns.

The region, which includes the cities of Bologna and Modena, has been hit hard by Storm Boris, the intense weather system that left at least 24 people dead in central Europe.