Central Functional Centre
The activation of the Central Functional Centre is provided for by the Directive of 27 February 2004 that sets out the "Operational guidelines for the organizational and functional management of the national, state and regional warning system for hydrogeological and hydraulic risk for the purposes of civil protection". The structure is located in Rome, at the operational headquarters of the Department of Civil Protection.
Tasks
It performs both forecasting activities, monitoring and surveillance of meteo-hydrogeological and hydraulic events and their impact on the territory so as to define risk scenarios, or to assess the impact that these events could have on the integrity of life, property, settlements and environment. The Central Functional Centre plays a leading role in the general coordination of the network of Functional Centers and can replace the tasks and functions of inactive decentralized functional centers, on request of concerned regions.
Forecasting activities
The Central Functional Center is operational 24/7 and is divided into a weather sector and a hydrogeological and hydraulic sector. In particular, it produces weather forecasts for civil protection purposes. Specifically forecasts of weather phenomena that may have an impact on the territory (for hydrogeological or hydraulic risk, or for situations concerning road and sea traffic) or on the population. Accordingly, the Bulletin of National Meteorological Vigilance is produced every day. A document that reports the situations in which one or more meteorological parameters are expected to exceed certain thresholds of attention or alarm. When the forecasts indicate phenomena of particular relevance at supra-regional level, considering the evaluations of decentralized functional centers, the weather division of the Central Functional Center releases national weather warnings.
Each Functional Center performs an assessment of the possible occurrence, or evolve, of effects on the ground (landslides and floods) as a result of expected or ongoing weather events. These evaluations are concerted and collected by the hydrogeological and hydraulic division of the Central Functional Center in the criticality Bullettin released every day to the Decentralized Functional Centers of the Regions and the Ministries of Interior, Agriculture, Infrastructure and Transport and Environment so that they in turn give information to their operational structures.
Monitoring and surveillance activities
The Central Functional Center of the Department also carries out hydropluviometric and radarmeteorological monitoring and surveillance activities on the national territory, supporting the Decentralized Functional Centers. In particular, it provides for the collection and integration of the information produced by the existing meteorological radar systems on the national territory.