Earthquake 2016, here are the measures of the manoeuvre. Reconstruction in Umbria accelerates

Now that the rubble has been removed, it is hard to recognise even the streets in Castelluccio. And from the tip of the hill, the village destroyed by the earthquake on 30 October 2016 is still mostly nostalgia for what was rather than projection of what will be. But cranes signal the start of complex work here too, as in many areas of Umbria and Marche; and tourists are back among the containers housing workshops and trattorias. Thus the town of the blossoming, like above all nearby Norcia, is preparing for the test of welcoming the next Jubilee, when thousands of pilgrims may also travel to the places of San Benedetto. And in the meantime, the Central Italy crater is reckoning with the measures provided for in the Budget Law and the extension of the state of emergency for the whole of 2025.

In Norcia, a moment of prayer at 7.40 a.m. recalled the destruction of eight years ago. The Basilica of St Benedict is still shrouded by scaffolding but in an advanced state of restoration, financed for 6 million by the European Union; 4 come from the Extraordinary Commissioner's structure; 5 from Eni. "Private and public reconstruction are well underway, within five years we expect to complete the recovery of the historic centre," the mayor, Giuliano Boccanera, confidently stated. And on the anniversary day, the construction site for the new school complex, a 17 million commitment, was also symbolically launched. On the other hand, the future of Castelluccio di Norcia passes through a public-private 'integrated reconstruction' project - for 60 million euro -: a large slab, equipped with seismic isolators, above which private buildings and public spaces are to be rebuilt. In May, work was delivered on the first application for terracing, underground utilities and roads.

Castelluccio di Norcia

Over five billion, of which 2.7 billion has been disbursed since January 2023, representing 52% of the entire amount allocated to private reconstruction since 2017. With a peak in October with 168.5 million. These are the numbers of Cassa depositi e prestiti disclosed by the structure of the Extraordinary Commissioner for the reconstruction of the territories hit by the earthquake in 2016 on the occasion of the anniversary of the 30 October quake that struck central Italy once again eight years ago, this time fortunately without any victims but with a very heavy toll in terms of tens of thousands of displaced persons and 131 damaged municipalities. The symbol of those days was the basilica of Norcia, which came down like papier-mâché.

30 October of this year marks eight years since the terrible tremor that struck Central Italy in 2016 at the height of one of the most violent seismic sequences in recent centuries," recalls Guido Castelli, Commissioner for Earthquake Repair and Reconstruction 2016. "If we are here today to talk about reconstruction that has finally been unblocked, it is also thanks to the determination and tenacious spirit of these communities, who have not given up even in the face of seemingly insurmountable obstacles. The reconstruction budget according to the Presidency of the Council structure counts over 20 thousand private construction sites of which 11 thousand already completed. A total of 9 billion euro has already been disbursed to citizens. For the public one, according to Palazzo Chigi "95 per cent of the interventions have been authorised, with 4.2 billion euro allocated for over 3,500 projects".

According to the data provided by the commissarial structure in Umbria, the reconstruction of private buildings since 2016 has seen 3,348 construction sites authorised, of which 1.962 already concluded with the return of families to their homes and economic activities to their places of work, while for public buildings 432 interventions have been financed for a total of 707 million euros of allocated sums (94 for school buildings, 56 for urbanisation works and infrastructures, 35 for public residential buildings, 23 for instability, 18 for town halls, 7 for health and social-sanitary buildings). In the Marche region, 18,186 applications were submitted, of which 12,705 were successful and disbursed. The total amount paid out to companies, based on the progress of building sites for houses and companies, is 3.65 billion euro. There are 6,911 construction sites underway, 4,815 of which have been completed. On the public reconstruction front, the region has 1,856 planned interventions, for a planned amount of 2.23 billion euro. The counter of the Palazzo Chigi structure reports 94% of the planned works in the start-up phase.