His eyes were those of millions of Italians. Glued to the web and TV to find out about the fate of Romagna plagued by the flood. Her eyes captured the ferocity of the rivers, transformed into tsunamis of water and mud by the exceptional rains that fell in a few hours and devastated everything they encountered along their path. They immortalized devastation, but also rescue, aid and a lot of solidarity. Looks, transmitted in one click, becoming indelible snapshots.
The 2023 flood that overwhelmed Forlì told through images by the photographer Cristiano Frascaalso a collaborator of ForlìToday, and which will be exhibited in an exhibition entitled “With your feet in the mud”, which will be on display from 16 to 19 May at the “Circolo Inzir – Viaggiatori in Circolo” in Via Bezzecca, 10. Four days to retrace the first moments after the flood , the chain of solidarity that emerged from it and that lifted us out of the mud. In addition to the exhibition, a series of collateral events are planned. “About sixty photos will be exhibited – begins Frasca -. It is a sort of journey through the first days of the flood, with ‘unpublished’ images, which, as the subtitle of the exhibition states, tell what was documented in the margins of the news”.
Can you explain this aspect to us?
“A few weeks after the flood, a ‘re-reading’ of the photos taken and which were not used for editorial purposes was carried out. There are more than ten thousand and I chose more than 300 from an initial selection. Then a friend of mine who was hit by the floods, Michele Carloni, with whom I share several photographic experiences, offered to help me carry out further screening”.
Let’s go back a year, to those dramatic days. When did you realize the situation was getting worse?
“My historic colleague, Alessandra Salieri, hung the weather warning of May 15th in her studio as a souvenir. The atmospheric conditions were worsening and already on the morning of the 16th, receiving increasingly insistent phone calls about the worrying levels of the rivers, we began to keep monitored the situation, as we do in these cases.”
But did you expect to have to deal with such a catastrophic scenario?
“With Alessandra in the past I had the opportunity to document extreme weather events and critical situations, such as the 2019 flood in Villafranca or the 2012 snow. Initially, in fact, there was no perception of a catastrophic situation. In the evening, while I was busy documenting what was happening in via Firenze, where the first victim of the flood in Forlì was confirmed, I realized that it was something bigger than we could have imagined.”
We remember well the long night live broadcast…
“It was a particularly difficult situation, because in addition to the flooding of the rivers, the heavy rain and the wind, the public lighting had failed. There were no conditions to move around safely. I had seen the situation in via Firenze first hand and in the meantime they told us that there were critical issues, for example, also in via Pelacano and that it was not reachable. We had understood that the next day we would have to deal with a day that to say was complicated would be an understatement”.
And you had the cool head to develop some sort of work plan…
“We had to prepare all the necessary equipment, such as boots and batteries, and also consider the difficulties with telephone communications. Furthermore, was there another problem that we could not underestimate?”
Which?
“The first night there was the fear that the office could also flood, considering the difficulties of the sewerage system and remembering a flood that occurred about thirty years ago. So I worked to secure the servers and other tools.”
And then the light came…
“And it allowed us to realize the tragedy that was taking place. That day with Alessandra we decided to work in pairs because in this way we could act more safely, paying attention to the water level and all the obstacles we could encounter along the roads transformed into rivers. Over time we have developed a proven and functional working method. Then Alessandra took action for the InZir club to coordinate the volunteers”.
Is there a picture meant?
“I can say the most dramatic one, which is that of first aid. The synthesis we have made for the exhibition is significant. It is difficult to say which is the most significant image, because multiple situations have been documented. Those exhibited at the exhibition are certainly the strongest ones and which summarize everything that the flood was”.
Are there any events planned in addition to the exhibition?
“Yes and I thank Alessandra, who coordinated the organisation, and the InZir Club. The exhibition can be considered the container of the meetings. Going in order, the inauguration of the exhibition is scheduled for 9pm on the 16th, after the official commemoration in Piazza Saffi. On the 17th, again at 9pm, there is an evening dedicated to the organizations that have received aid through the InZir fundraising. On this occasion they will talk about their experience and meet the benefactors. In total, 25 projects have been supported From 6pm to 4pm there will be a round table open to the public on how to communicate an emergency with images with the participation of some professional photographers. On the 19th, starting from 5pm, the neighborhoods will be the protagonists, with the reading of stories written in the days of the emergency flood organized by the Expressive and Body Therapies Group of the “Essere con” Association of Forlì. The event is sponsored by the Municipality of Forlì, the Forlì-Cesena Press Association and the Airf, Italian Association of Reporters and Photographers, in addition to the collaboration of the Coriano, Pianta, Ospedaletto, Foro Boario and San Benedetto neighborhoods”.
The times of the exhibition?
“Thursday 16th and Friday 17th from 8pm to 11pm, Saturday 18th and Sunday 19th from 9.30am to 12.30pm and from 3pm to 9pm. Entrance is free”.
How has Forlì changed one year after the flood?
“Difficult to answer.”
So I’ll put it to you this way: what scar does Forlì bear?
“The signs of the flood are still evident. People pay greater attention to atmospheric events, looking at the rivers with more concern and with greater insistence at the sewer outlets when it rains. There is more anxiety, but there is also a positive aspect…”
Which?
“In the neighborhoods affected by the flood, a form of solidarity and sociality has emerged, and this should be treasured. I hope that there can be a more participatory dimension also on the part of those who have not been directly affected by this tragedy”.
Speaking of solidarity, your daughter Valeria was appointed ‘Standard of the Republic’ by President Sergio Mattarella for her commitment during the days of the flood. What did you feel?
“A great satisfaction, even if, as you said, she didn’t do anything special. She made her skills available together with her sister Rachele to help coordinate the volunteers. What she did in those days was with the heart and spontaneously, far from expecting such great recognition.”
