Black Saturday by Capri it is immortalized in the postcard of a deserted Piazzetta, an icon of desolation and bewilderment, with the empty tables of cafes that have decided to close at midday. The Blue Island without water: a punch in the stomach for tourists, VIPs and tour operators. It’s all the fault of a fault in the water network due to the presence of a huge air bubble in the pipes that also serve the Sorrento peninsula from Castellammare di Stabia. In the midst of a tourist season that is expected to be more than favorable, a significant inconvenience for the image of one of the most exclusive and sought-after places.
You can already feel it when you disembark at the port, besieged by crowds of “hit and run” tourists who have decided to go back to Naples. When, at the first light of dawn, it was realized that the taps of houses, B&Bs, hotels, bars and restaurants appeared dry, the two mayors of the island – Paolo Falco and his colleague from Anacapri, Alessandro Scoppa – decided to share a bitter but obligatory choice: banning the disembarkation of all tourists, allowing an exemption for residents only.
Predictably, the news quickly went around the world. «When at midday we understood that the reassurances provided to us by the Gori company on the restoration of supplies did not correspond to reality – Falco explains to the “Mattino” – we had no other choice, and we signed the prohibition order. A necessary act to safeguard the minimum hygienic-health conditions for everyone.” At 2pm the rooms of the Municipality of Capri had transformed into a real center of crisis units, with administrators, technicians and employees at work in a direct line always open with the prefect of Naples, Michele di Bari: they were already ready to set sail on some ferries with tankers and even a military ship to ensure all forms of assistance.
Meanwhile outside, the streets normally besieged by the flood of tourists that inevitably swells at weekends appeared empty, and almost ghostly when you think that it’s the end of June; ice cream parlors, designer boutiques, bars, empty hotel terraces, and even worse, restaurants: from via Le Botteghe to via Camerelle there are no signs or tables set, but without customers.
«Those who have the possibility of using the tanks can still afford to work – explains the owner of the d’Amore restaurant – but there are now also those who are forced to shower using bottles of mineral water»; is echoed by a customer, who does not hesitate to talk about profiteering when it comes to mineral water: «There are those who, faced with the water crisis of the moment, have already started to speculate: a friend of mine was even asked for five euros per bottle”.
Faced with the uncertainty of the future, the rush to purchase bottled water becomes a necessity. Two couples of young Tuscans leave a grocery store with bags full of minerals. «That’s all we could get, they told us they couldn’t sell more than two bottles each. It will mean that we will also be careful about shampooing ourselves with carbonated water…”.
Things went decidedly worse for a group of Milanese who had arrived on the island for two days for a wedding organized a year ago: everyone turned around, destination Naples, and we’ll see tomorrow. The bride’s tears are not enough to save the longed-for appointment: the ceremony and wedding banquet are skipped.
He is also bitter Salvatore Naldi, owner of one of the most sought-after hotels on Capri, “La Pazziella”: «What is happening is very serious – comments the president of Federalberghi Napoli – both because it happens at the height of the tourist season, and because it represents a hard blow to Capri does not deserve. But now let’s hope for the best, and let’s try to be optimistic.”
Naldi’s words are prophetic. The latest summit in the Prefecture leaves room for concrete hope: the Gori water company announces that the repair is completed and that we are moving towards filling the underwater pipeline to Capri. All the eyes of the people of Capri (and tourists, of course) will be glued to the taps to greet the return of the water.
The disembarkation ban for tourists without hotel reservations has been lifted from today. But this parenthesis of great thirst risks not ending like this, with tarallucci and wine: and someone could be called to account for the damage to the image inflicted on the Blue Island. The mayors of the two municipalities are seriously thinking about it.
