Residents remove mud and debris after heavy rains hit Emilia Romagna region, in Faenza, Italy, on Thursday. Reuters

In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MoFAIC) expressed its sincere condolences and sympathy to the Italian Government and people, as well as the families of victims, wishing a speedy recovery for all the injured.

Rescue workers searched on Thursday for people still trapped by floodwaters in northeast Italy as more residents were evacuated after downpours, which killed eleven people and devastated homes and farms, AFP reported.

People are rescued in Faenza, Italy, on Thursday. AP

Residents waded through dirty water or reclaimed what they could from sodden houses in towns across the wealthy Emilia Romagna region, famed for its historic cities and prized gastronomy.

As mammoth clean-up efforts got underway in some areas, authorities said electricity had been partly restored, but some 27,000 people were still in the dark.

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Nearly two-dozen rivers and streams flooded across the southeast of the low-lying region following heavy rain earlier this week, submerging entire neighbourhoods and farmland, and damaging 400 roads.

Agricultural lobby Coldiretti said on Thursday that more than 5,000 farms were under water, with drowned animals and tens of thousands of hectares of vineyards, fruit trees, vegetables and grain flooded.

As the water receded, residents were left cleaning homes and streets thick with mud and filled with debris.

"I've lived here since 1979, I've seen floods go by, but I've never seen anything like that," Edoardo Amadori, a resident of the city of Cesena, told AFP on Wednesday.

WAM