A storm system that has wreaked havoc across central Europe brought devastating floods to the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna on Thursday for the second year in a row, forcing people to leave their homes and schools to close.

More than 50 regions of Italy have issued alerts, as flooding continues to batter Poland and the Czech Republic.

Italian authorities have evacuated some 1,000 people from homes as the tail end of Storm Boris pummelled a northeastern region that was devastated by deadly flooding last year, regional authorities said on Thursday.

Storm Boris, which has swept through Central and Eastern Europe since last week, has hit northern Italy, causing severe flooding and landslides. Two people are considered missing, and around 1,000 have been evacuated from their homes,