Water of Fluorescent green Grand Canal at height of the Rialto Bridge. Venice woke up like this, Sunday morning, with a surprise which, for now, not there is a sure explanation. The president of the Region, Luca Zaia, also expressed himself on his Twitter profile, writing: «The prefect has summoned an urgent meeting with the police force to learn more about the origin of the liquid». Naturally it is precisely the cause of this unusual coloring that has sparked the curiosity of the most.
The Norwegian boat
Aldo Reato, voice of the gondoliers and municipal councilor on the Brugnaro list, is also collecting information: «In the city there is talk of a Japanese seaweed. If someone released it in the Grand Canal we still don’t know. It’s certainly not our thing, it’s an absolute novelty. Nor is it excluded a demonstrative act of an intending artist to convey a message, taking advantage of the fact that in Venice anything makes news all over the world. However it seems it is not nothing polluting”. Furthermore, a gondolier would have seen Norwegians, aboard two small boats, throwing pills. An unconfirmed version, for the moment. The Last Generation militants also spoke about the matter and reiterated that they had nothing to do with what happened.
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Around 9.30, some citizens reported the stain, who notified the local police. Due to the modality of the event, the fact follows the demonstrations that took place in other cities by environmental militants, but unlike those there is no claim. There is also the assumption that it is about “fluorescein sodium”, a kind of dye. The lagoon city is overwhelmed by tourists, like every weekend. In addition, the «Vogalonga», a non-competitive regatta that also runs along the Grand Canal, has been taking place since this morning. The local police have already collected a sample of the water for analysis and confirmed that it has never been seen in that colour. The hypothesis that something has been thrown, even pills, in the Grand Canal, is getting stronger. The firefighters explicitly speak of a “coloring substance” but have alerted the Arpav (Regional agency for environmental prevention and protection) who is on his way to the site and will take care of the analyses.
The tracer
Following the first investigations conducted by the firefighters together with the local police and Arpav, the Prefect of Venice ordered the holding of a joint coordination meeting. At the moment the substance would seem to be considered a “tracer”i.e. a liquid that is introduced in all those circumstances where there is a loss of water in order to understand the route followed. The action has not yet been claimed and no situations of danger to the health of the population emerged. They are ongoing, with the contribution of all components of the meeting technique, the necessary investigations to clarify the nature and causes. The prefect of Venice Michele di Bari, together with the Quaestor, has ordered an intensification of vigilance in the lagoon area to monitor any critical issues and prevent further similar episodes. A new meeting is scheduled for Monday.