Campi Flegrei: 500 people displaced. Summit with Piantedosi today
The Campania Region is allocating 1 million. A request has been made to the Government for 100 million to repair the damage and 6 million to cover the cost of temporary accommodation.
Over 550 people, nearly 230 families left homeless, and a further 800 requests for property inspections still to be processed. Following the 4.7-magnitude earthquake that struck the Campi Flegrei area again on Friday after 7 pm – fortunately causing no fatalities but leaving around ten people injured – the priorities now are to provide assistance to those who have been forced to leave their homes because they are uninhabitable, and to restore services: water supply and transport, particularly rail services.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office has ordered an investigation into the collapses of the rock faces: funds had been allocated for their stabilisation, but these had not been used. In particular, in Pozzuoli, the rock face on Monte Olibano collapsed, crushing parked cars and scooters and causing serious injuries.
And this time, unlike previous instances of bradyseism resurgence, there is a sense of disappointment and outrage, even amongst mayors, because many of the measures promised in recent years have not even got off the ground. “The government’s delays,” says the mayor of Bacoli, Josy Gerardo Della Ragione, “are causing more damage than the bradyseism itself.” Tensions boiled over during yesterday’s protest in Pozzuoli to mark the visit of the Minister for Culture, Alessandro Giuli, who had travelled to the Phlegraean Fields for a technical inspection of the archaeological sites, including the Flavian Amphitheatre and the Rione Terra. Dozens of residents blocked roads and called for urgent action. Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi is expected tomorrow.
There is as yet no estimate of the damage: this is no easy task, as Friday’s earthquake was strong and caused widespread damage. This includes public buildings, such as schools, post offices and health district offices (the health district at 29 Via Diano has been closed), as well as homes. There is also significant concern regarding the coastline. The Campania Regional Government has asked the national government for 100 million to repair the damage and for 6 million to provide financial assistance for independent accommodation for those who have lost their homes and choose not to stay in a hotel. The Region has allocated one million to provide an advance on this funding. ‘We have approved funding of one million through a Regional Executive resolution,’ explains Fiorella Zabatta, the Campania Region’s Councillor for Civil Protection, from the coordination centre set up in Monte Ruscello, ‘and at the same time we have streamlined the allocation procedure. In fact, the grant may be awarded to citizens on the basis of a report from the fire service alone, even before the uninhabitable property has been sealed off.” The issue of the independent accommodation grant is a sore point, as citizens affected by two previous waves of bradyseism in 2025 have still not received anything. And it is Della Ragione once again who voices this discontent: “We have been waiting since March 2025 for a government decree to release the funds allocated by the Campania Region, but it has not arrived.” Meanwhile, reinforcements have been requested from the Fire Service to carry out structural stability checks on buildings, from the police, and from specialist companies to repair the water mains. The central coordination centre is based at the Prefecture of Naples.
The other major emergency concerns transport. In Pozzuoli, numerous roads are closed to traffic for safety reasons or to allow rubble to be cleared. But the main cause for concern is the closure of the Cumana railway line, ordered due to damage in a tunnel. This local railway, operated by Eav, connects the towns of the Phlegraean area with Naples. ‘Work is underway on the Cumana Tunnel,’ says Gaetano Manfredi, Mayor of Naples and the metropolitan area, ‘and we are moving in the right direction.’ “We are carrying out inspections,” explains Mario Casillo, Councillor for Transport, “there is still movement in the tunnel.” The latest inspection took place last night. The mayor of Bacoli has voiced his protest. “Our metro has also been out of service for three months due to CO₂ emissions,” he says, “and we don’t know when it will be back in service.” Meanwhile, the port has been open again since Saturday.
