Due to a violent fire that broke out on Saturday afternoon in the Albenga area, in the Savona area, the number of people evacuated around the Villanova airport rose to 70. The most problematic situation occurred along the provincial road 453, in particular between Borgo Verde and Marina Verde, where many houses were threatened by fire and some houses left empty in Coasco were burned. A building in Borgoverde also burned down. In the morning the flames began to head towards Cisano sul Neva, the Aurelia bis direction Alassio – Albenga (towards Genoa) was reopened, while the direction Albenga – Alassio (towards Ventimiglia) remains closed; the motorway is regularly open in both directions and for the moment it is not affected by nearby flames. In the meantime, the homecoming of the displaced has also begun: these are thirty people residing in the municipality of Albenga, the inhabitants of the Coasco Marinaverde hamlet and people living along the provincial road 453 Villanova-Ortovero, on the river side. Then gradually all the others returned, only three remained away from the house.
The mayors
The regional civil protection was immediately activated together with the firefighters and forest fire prevention volunteers, to contain the fire. The Municipal Operations Center is also open. The ash rain has reached the coast, on the beach of Alassio. “What happened last night is something never seen before. The fire destroyed everything, there were scenes of panic everywhere.” Thus Pietro Balestra, mayor of Villanova D’Albenga, one of the municipalities of the Savona area devastated by the stake. “Here we have had about 70 displaced people – continues Balestra – many have found accommodation with family members, while others have been hosted in the Palafiori in Villanova and others in some hotels in Alassio”.
Fire in western Liguria, the story of the displaced
Fifteen fire brigade teams are working, of which five have come from Genoa, Piacenza, Cuneo, Turin and Bergamo. “This night was a disaster – remarks Riccardo Tomatis, mayor of Albenga – it was a hellish situation. We saw incredible flames up to 20 meters high. And when at sunset the water launches with Canadair and helicopters stopped, we felt lost, helpless. I saw people desperate for what they lost. And people who stayed all night in their car to avoid leaving their homes. The firefighters and volunteers were very good, they managed to save many homes by fighting until at the last meter. Now we are waiting for the Region which has not yet arrived since Saturday. There are people who had invested in olive groves and vineyards who have lost everything “.
Over 100 firefighters with 70 forest firefighting volunteers are working on the fire that affected an area of 400 hectares, double what was burned last year in the whole spring-summer. The regional councilor for civil protection Giacomo Giampedrone, who this morning made an inspection in Borgo Verde, in the municipality of Villanova d’Albenga, confirmed that there are currently three displaced persons: a person who lived alone in an apartment that was completely destroyed and others three people, members of a single family unit, who lived in the apartment above the destroyed one and which was declared uninhabitable. All the others are returning to their residences. At the first light, the flames had also attacked the roof of a second building, but the fire was extinguished in the bud. Three houses affected by the flames: in addition to the two apartments in Borgoverde, an isolated hut also in the Municipality of Villanova d’Albenga.
Fire in the Savona area, flames lick the highway: canadair in action to put out the flames
In recent days and weeks, several fires have attacked Liguria. Twice the alarm went off on the hills above La Spezia, while in Genoa part of the hill above the Cep district went up in flames. The “state of serious danger due to forest fires has been in force throughout Liguria since 24 June: it is therefore It is forbidden to light any kind of fire, for example to burn plant material resulting from agricultural work, as well as to use equipment that can cause sparks. Very heavy penalties are foreseen for offenders ranging from steep fines to imprisonment.
And today afternoon two further fires have developed, one in Airole, in the extreme west of Liguria, and one in Varazze, in the Savona area. At the moment a helicopter is operating in Airole, while a canadair is operating in Varazze.