Wall collapse in Genoa, the second in two days

Second collapse in two days in Genoa. Yesterday, a retaining wall had collapsed in Via Napoli, in the Oregina district, near a building from which 52 people were evacuated; today another retaining wall collapsed behind numbers 1 and 2 of passo Caporale Pietro Barsanti, in the Castelletto district. The rubble collapsed over one of the two entrances to a car park located in an underground tunnel. Local police officers immediately responded to the scene, together with state police, carabinieri and firefighters. The latter are securing the area and carrying out technical checks. Investigations are underway to assess the stability conditions. The collapses are the probable consequence of the heavy rain that has hit the Genoa area in recent days.

As a precautionary measure, the Genoa City Council announced, it was necessary to evacuate three people living in one of the two affected flats. The evacuees, who all belong to the same household, have found independent accommodation and, for the time being, have not requested municipal housing assistance.

The Genoa City Council's Councillor for Public Works, Massimo Ferrante, also arrived at the scene to coordinate safety operations and monitor the extent of the structural damage. One of the two flats affected by the collapse of the wall behind it (on which stood a small vegetable garden), Ferrante explained, "was uninhabited and therefore there are no problems. At the moment there are three people evacuated (from the other flat, ndr), who have found free accommodation. The civil protection is checking all the cavities behind' the two buildings.

The fire brigade, Ferrante continued, 'dug to get inside the tunnel with the pits. There are no reports of anyone trapped inside. Now, however, we need to check the landslide front because, during the course of the day, people had been seen in the garden area and the landslide front is very high. We must therefore verify that no one is involved.

According to the councillor, 'something very similar may have happened in Via Napoli. Here we have walls from the 19th century, from the time of the architect Carlo Barabino. In Via Napoli, on the other hand, we have a situation of reinforced concrete walls. The city, after all, is built on walls, on embankments that become dams when they can no longer filter water. In Via Napoli the problem stems from the fact that, after 60-70 years, reinforced concrete tends to crumble, because the iron emerges, oxidises and causes the concrete to burst. Here, on the other hand, we are dealing with walls that are 140-150 years old and which, if proper maintenance is not done, will collapse over time. This is a problem that, in our city, is unfortunately becoming almost the norm. It is a fragile city for the construction of which hillsides have been excavated, space has been stolen, slopes have been attacked in various historical periods. And if proper maintenance is not done, these are the results. This too, like that of Via Napoli, is a private situation, but that doesn't mean anything'.