Potenza tops in Italy for forest fire reports

Potenza is one of the safest provinces in Italy. This is confirmed by the 2023 crime index ranking drawn up by the 'Sole 24 Ore': 105th place out of 106 provinces, with 6,645 complaints in the province of Potenza, 1,935 per 100 thousand inhabitants, and 1,544 in the Lucania capital, with an incidence of 23%. Among the most significant data, the province of Potenza is in third place nationally for thefts, with 414 complaints per 100 thousand inhabitants. But it is among the top ten provinces with the highest incidence of complaints for fires and forest fires. This type of crime is usually accompanied by the phenomenon of extortion, which instead sees the Potentino area in 93rd place in the ranking. As for the crime of usury, there was only one complaint in 2023, and the number of victims assisted by anti-usury associations is a cause for reflection: mostly, however, families excluded from the Fund's benefits. "But even with a downward trend in delinquency, preserving the economic fabric of this province remains an absolute priority," for the prefect of Potenza Michele Campanaro, who looks at the inter-force data from the Ministry of the Interior's Sdi Data Bank updated to the first nine months of 2024, which continue to record a decrease "both at the provincial level and on the capital, confirming," he explained, "the excellent work on the repressive and preventive plan of the police forces.

In the last five years, between 2019 and 2024, crimes fell by 23.1 %, slightly less than 21.3 % in the capital. In the Potentino area, from January to August there were 4,208 crimes committed (in the same period in 2023 there were 4,326), with a decrease in robberies (16 compared to 25), but an increase in thefts, a trend also confirmed in Potenza, with a 15% increase. In the capital, crimes fell by 3% in one year and the number of drug offences fell (from 31 to 20). "Alongside the work of the police, however, there must be an even more convinced and incisive commitment on the part of the local administrators, who are better able than anyone else to intercept the needs and criticalities of the territories," stressed the prefect, who for more than two years has been holding itinerant meetings of the provincial committee for public order and safety, meeting with the province's one hundred mayors grouped by homogeneous areas: from Vulture-Alto Bradano, an area that is more vulnerable to predatory crimes due to its proximity to the Apulian provinces of Foggia and Bat and exposed to criminal commuting, which, on the other hand, has decreased in the southern area of Basilicata.

The central theme is the new frontier of urban security with the implementation of video surveillance systems, the enhancement of the role of local police forces, and the spread of neighbourhood control experiences, which are increasingly numerous in the province of Potenza. "Many municipalities in the Province," said Province President Christian Giordano, "have invested in advanced video surveillance systems and digital platforms for reporting suspicious activities, demonstrating how local commitment can make a difference. This is an incentive to continue along this path, promoting a culture of legality and security necessary to improve the quality of life and attractiveness of our land.

The Municipality of Potenza, in particular, has already benefited from an initial financing from the Poc Funds in 2022/2023 of EUR 250,000 from the Ministry of the Interior and another ministerial financing in 2024 of EUR 226,000 to further strengthen the video surveillance system throughout the municipality.

"It is fundamental," reiterated the mayor of Potenza, Vincenzo Telesca, "to promote a culture of collective responsibility, where each citizen feels like a guardian of public green spaces, of the city's decorum, and of its tangible and non-tangible heritage. Everyone must respect the rules of civil coexistence, avoiding behaviour such as bivouacking in the city streets, especially at weekends. Aspects that have a great impact on the quality of life and the perception of safety in our city'.