Two people died after 48 hours of almost continuous rain caused flooding in northern Italy, officials said Wednesday.

An 80-year-old man was swept away while on his bicycle in Castel Bolognese, between Ravenna and Bologna in the region of Emilia Romagna, regional authorities said.

In nearby Fontanelice, another person died after a house collapsed, a spokesman for the local fire service told AFP.

"We have two confirmed victims, in different situations," he said.

He added that searches continued in Fontanelice, as "we cannot exclude the presence of other people in the collapsed house".

More than 450 people were evacuated from the area around Ravenna, while many local roads were closed off and train services were suspended.

Much of northern Italy suffered a drought last winter, on top of a record lack of rain last summer that devastated harvests.