Lake Maggiore is holding steadily at minus 40 centimetres relative to the hydrometric zero, approaching the record low for this period of the year registered in August 1976, when the lake dropped to minus 50 centimetres. The prolonged absence of rainfall continues to lower the water level, widening beaches and bringing back to light stretches of shoreline and areas normally submerged, visibly altering the lake's landscape.

In the marina of Arona, on the Piedmont shore, boats rest on mud. On Monday the lake dropped below the 2022 level, a particularly critical year, and is approaching the negative record of 1947. Boatmen report that in some spots it is no longer possible to navigate, and that water levels once considered occasional are becoming habitual.

The water crisis is not limited to Lake Maggiore. Along the Ticino river, in the Pavia area, dozens of boats are stranded due to the drought that has affected the area's water basins in recent months. In Lombardy, according to the weekly report of the Anbi Water Resources Observatory, water reserves are below half of the normal volumes for this period, with all the major northern lakes well below average; in Cremona the Po river is dry.

The consequences for tourism are significant. The president of the Tourist District of Lakes, Mountains and Valleys of Ossola, Francesco Gaiardelli, reports that the formation of foul-smelling algae makes swimming difficult and that the interests of tourism operators, navigation, agriculture and hydropower production need to be reconciled. Gaiardelli also stressed the need to invest in the territory and public works, stating that drought now occurs every year and that resources should be directed toward the territory rather than armaments.

No structural interventions have so far been announced by the competent authorities. The situation remains monitored by water observatories, pending possible rainfall or water resource management measures.