Italian forklift manufacturer Carer is in recovery mode after being devastated in the recent flooding in the north of the country.

The Ravenna facility was caught in the inundations which saw more than 20 rivers burst their banks in Italy, leaving 13 people dead and forcing thousands from their homes after six months' rainfall fell in a day and a half.

Some 280 landslides have taken place.

In a LinkedIn update, the company confirms that staff worked over the weekend to “rip our company out of the water”.

“There is still a long way to go, but we will come back stronger than before,” the update proclaims.

Carer is located in Ravenna, Emilia-Romagna, the area worst affected in the flooding which has caused damage estimated at billions of Euros.

Other forklift makers seem to have escaped the disaster.

Baumann Sideloaders, located in Cavaion Veronese, also in the north of Italy, was forced to temporarily halt some of its expansion work during the recent bad weather but “thankfully, we’ve experienced no major setbacks and this is somewhat insignificant compared to those who have been injured or killed in the subsequent flooding”, according to a spokesman.

“Obviously, our thoughts and best wishes are with all those adversely affected by the flooding,” he adds.

Bolzoni, which has production facilities in Piacenza, also in the north, was not affected by the flooding, global marketing director Carlo Fallarini tells Forkliftaction News.

The company has not been asked for specific recovery assistance, although Fallarini says it is likely that forklifts equipped with Bolzoni attachments will be used in the rescue and recovery efforts.

“The population in (the flood-affected) areas are very proactive and resilient and will be able to quickly recover,” he notes.

Mariotti Forklifts in Grugliasco in the north-west of Italy, which was struck by heavy thunderstorms 10 days ago, avoided the flooding. Business development manager Francesco Bruno confirms the company's operations were "not affected by the flooding problem", but notes that some dealers have been caught up in the disaster.

Toyota Material Handling Europe doesn’t have any operations in the affected region and corporate communication director Jonas Lindell tells Forkliftaction News the company has not suffered any direct impact besides “minor disturbances due to employees that are affected privately or via the fact that our business partners (suppliers, dealers) are affected”.

“However, it is too early to see or overview the full impact and effects on our business,” he says, adding that some Toyota dealers are being impacted and closing - either for preventive reasons or as a direct result of the flooding.

“We continue to monitor the situation carefully and (are) in close contact with all our partners. We have established a separate task force of service technicians standing by to support customers and dealers with urgent and extra needs,” he adds.

Meanwhile, Italian authorities are focused on relief and recovery efforts, with the government approving an emergency relief package worth more than EUR2 billion (USD2.2 billion) to help the flood-affected areas.

The package includes emergency-related spending and moratoriums on tax and social contributions for affected households and firms.