A weather alert that fails to arrive, the rain that increases in intensity and then suddenly all is dark. Genoa has again been injured and has to emerge quickly from the abyss in order not stay stuck in the mire. Mud and debris have swallowed all that they have encountered along their way, the population is in despair and donot feel the closeness of their next door neighbor neither the local authorities nor the State. Arianna Fazzi is a 29 year old from Genoa with a degree in Sciences of Communication and has specialised in “Management and Physical Training”, but like many of her peers, she has not had the opportunity yet to do something with her studies that would permit to lead a dignified life. Nevertheless, she always found a way to get by, and so the last two years had been spent working in a coffee-bar called “Bel Caffé” in the district of Brignole, as an apprentice hoping that in a year’s time she would have been able to get an open contract.
But now all her expectations have been buried under the rubble. Her eyes and mind still shaken by fear: “On Saturday morning, once the shutter, which had been loosened from its hinges by the mud, was forced open, an apocalyptic scenario unfolded in front of my eyes, that I would never have been able to imagine before then: the walls, the chairs were entirely covered by a greyish slush, unbearable miasims: cracked bottles that fromed splinters making it dangerous to walk on and the sparkling glass-water made it all ghost-like. Not to mention the economic damages: when we went down into the basement, we found that 5 fridge motors worth 3/4,000 Euros literally had to be thrown away. On having completed the check, we shut the coffee-bar for fear of looters, who would be always ready to steal “. Thirty thousand Euros-worth damage which for a small business are a terrible blow; and the worst thing is that in two years this is the second time it happens.
The people of Genoa are grumbling but won’t give in: they organised themselves to take it in turns among the owners and volunteers nicknamed “Angels” that have equipe themselves for days with spades and an incredible strength helping those who were in need the most. And, as thug that was not enough, a long blackout has fueled the anger of residents and making it difficult to work, leaving entire neighborhoods totally isolated. Arianna, who with slight bitterness in her voice adds that the real hard job, was left entirely to the citizens and volunteers. ” The firefighters have given priority to emptying out the cellars and the army was seen for the first time only yesterday, even though their arrival had been announced several days earlier.”. “Bel Caffé has shut, as well as a bike shop that had just recovered from the flooding in 2011; a meccanic-shop run by father and son are in the identical situation, and who now find themselves jobless. Arianna tells of having embraced Marco, the son of the owner, who told her that, since they had opened, they had had exactly five floods. And this is exactly the same situation of 90% of all cases concerning the ordinary man in the street who struggles to make ends meet and who feels weary and at a loss following the latest tragedy.
Arianna feels strong but at the same time her concern commes through in the manner in which she speaks: “I am sure that we will rise up again and quite fast too, at that, just as we did in the ‘ 70’s, in the ‘ 90s and in 2011; I feel lucky because while my business will pick up soon, many people will have to start afresh with the risk that they won’t make it. We are in a total state of dispair “. What did not work in the town was the entire system, from the weather look-out to the delays in relief-aid. “Instead of speaking about ‘extraordinary facts’ each time –concludes Arianna distressed, it would be better to go and take a look at the ‘health status’ of our rivers; we’ve been speaking about the river Bisagno right through the whole of last summer, it is so logge up by debris in some periods of the year that there is always the risk that could overflood at any moment “.
The anger in the streets of the provincial capital of Liguria is palpable and the mayor of the city, Marco Doria, is facing accusations. “Go home!” screams a shopkeeper. ” People are angry, ,disappointed and, exhausted: “if I had been the mayor – says another; “I would have chained myself in Rome. Are you afraid? The moment will come when you’ll also get a political slap in the face “. And this time we donot speak by metaphor …
Traslation provided by Marina Stronati
