Belice

For the Central American country, see Belize.
Belice
Country Italy
Basin
Main source Near Piana degli Albanesi
River mouth Strait of Sicily, Castelvetrano
Basin size 866 km2 (334 sq mi)
Physical characteristics
Length 77 km (48 mi)

The Belice, Sicilian: Bèlici, is a river of western Sicily. It is about 77 kilometres (48 mi) long.[1] From its main source near Piana degli Albanesi it runs south and west for 45.5 kilometres (28.3 mi) as the Belice Destro ("right Belice") until it is joined near Poggioreale by its secondary branch, the 42-kilometre (26 mi) Belice Sinistro ("left Belice"), which rises on the slopes of Rocca Busambra. The Belice proper then flows for another 30 kilometres (19 mi) or so before entering the Strait of Sicily to the east of the ancient Greek archaeological site of Selinunte. During Classical times it was known as the Hypsas.

History

The middle section of the Belice valley was hit by a severe earthquake in January 1968 which completely destroyed numerous centres of population, including Gibellina, Montevago and Salaparuta. Three hundred and seventy people died, a thousand were injured and some 70,000 people were made homeless.

References

  1. ↑ Luciana Biagini (ed.) (1993). Enciclopedia della geografia. Novara: Istituto Geografico De Agostini. ISBN 9788841507643.

Coordinates: 37°35′N 12°52′E / 37.583°N 12.867°E / 37.583; 12.867


This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 4/19/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.