The church was full, Riccione clung to the families of the victims in the tragic accident on the A4, in a prayer vigil celebrated on Sunday evening in the church of San Martino. The dead, unfortunately, have risen to seven: the educator Romina Bannini, after having struggled between life and death, did not make it. “Now they look at us from some portholes, from some balconies that must be there up there in the sky” and “we embrace each other in pain but also in hope” because “not everything can end here” are the words of Bishop Francesco Lambiasi.
Riccione mourns the former mayor Massimo Pironithe five boys of Center 21, Francesca Conti, Rossella De Luca, Maria Aluigi, Valentina Ubaldi and Alfredo Barbieri and Romina Bannini, operator in the structure that deals with people with Down syndrome. The funeral will take place at 2.30pm
Thursday 13 October at the Riccione stadium. This was announced by the municipal administration of the city of Romagna: “The great participation of the people of Riccione, and not only, in the pain caused by this terrible tragedy leads us to organize the funeral in the largest and most suitable place: the Riccione stadium”, he said the mayor Daniela Angelini that on that day will proclaim city mourning.
The bodies of the victims will be transported from San Donà di Piave on Wednesday morning. The funeral parlor will be set up inside the Sports Hall, the PlayHall in viale Carpi, a structure that was inaugurated by Massimo Pironi, and will remain open from 15 to 22 on Wednesday 12 October and from 7 to 13 on Thursday 13 October.
The funeral, a unique ceremony as requested by the families of the victims, will be presided over by the bishop of Rimini, Francesco Lambiasi. Around two thousand seats will be available in the stands at the Nicoletti stadium in viale Forlimpopoli, while another six thousand people will be able to find space on the lawn. The installation of some large screens is foreseen. Outside the stadium there are parking areas for about 600 cars, in addition to all those along the neighboring streets. The altar will be set up along the edge of the playing rectangle opposite the stands. On the sides of the altar seats will be reserved for the families of the victims and for the members of the choir. All the parish priests of Riccione will concelebrate the mass. Numerous choirs of the city will participate in the function.
On the day of the funeral, in addition to the agents of the local police, volunteers from the Civil Protection and the Red Cross will also be mobilized. “There are already many people from Riccione who have declared their willingness to participate in organizing the funeral: I thank each of them on behalf of the city”, said the mayor Daniela Angelini.
The bishop at the vigil: “Courage, people of Riccione”
The bishop, the deacon Paolo Fabbri and all the priests of the city concelebrated the vigil held on Sunday. Seated in the front rows are the relatives of the victims, held by the people of Riccione in a fraternal embrace, moved and respectful of pain. The authorities were present, starting with the mayor Daniela Angelini accompanied by her council. Of course, the bishop said, today one feels oppressed by “a mountain of torment”, but “love is stronger than death. No triumphalism would be out of tune, rhetorical and hypocritical”, but “even on 7 October 2022” ( day of the accident) God is ready to welcome “our young friends and dear Massimo, with whom I inaugurated Center 21”. Riccione, Lambiasi concludes, is “dismayed by so much pain just at the moment when it was about to celebrate 100 years of life and we are here to get full of hope. Once again death has suffered a bitter defeat. Courage people of Riccione” .
Center 21: “Our angels will guide us”
The educators of the Center21 and of the Cuore 21 co-op are grateful for their closeness in times of pain. And in a post they write: “This is the moment of silence … We cannot but thank the hundreds of people who are close to us in so many ways, with affection, with participation, with a message, a post, with a prayer, with a bouquet of flowers placed in front of our offices. Not feeling alone in this way is a great help, with all this pain the strength to look forward comes from the recognition of the goodness of the work started and from the strong certainty that our angels now they will be able to guide us from heaven, all together as always but with different roles “.
The message of the city: “They will always be with us”
The message posted by the Municipality of Riccione is moving: “We seem to see them, Massimo, Francesca, Rossella, Maria, Romina, Valentina and Alfredo, while they play, while they chase and dance, as if in balance, a sweet choreography of the soul on the wire of the horizon. They will always be there for us, with us … “.
Hundreds of messages on social media, including that of the secretary Pd Enrico Letta: “Heartbroken, astonished. Unable to express anything other than silence, pain and closeness to the families affected by the terrible accident and to the whole community of the secretaries”. The condolences are extended: “Hello golden boys, hello Massimo good heart. We at 2030 Riccione embrace the families of the victims, moved and incredulous. We went to visit them at their beautiful August party, in via Limentani, and we were able to to see once more their incredible positive energy and their unstoppable love for life. Extraordinary guys “.
Solidarity for the victims
As a sign of mourning, Riccione suspended the first evenings for the centenary party with Ron, Paolo Fresu and Mirko Casadei. The three artists made themselves available for a tribute to the victims. While Claudio Cecchetto started a fundraiser on Gofundme.