Little was known then and not much more is known now, more than two weeks after the tragedy. How did the accident that cost Franco Del Chicca his life happen? What caused the collision between the bicycle on which the 85-year-old physical education teacher, one of the most important names in Parma volleyball, was pedaling and the road motorcyclist Traversetolo? The local police and the prosecutor’s office are asking themselves this question, having opened a case for road homicide on the accident, which is headed by prosecutor Francesca Arienti. The same question is asked by the professor’s family members who have relied on the lawyer Daniele Carra.
On their behalf, the criminal lawyer launches the appeal for anyone who has seen something to come forward, calling either his office (on 0521283268) or the local police operations center (on 0521218000). The accident did not happen in the middle of the night on a secondary road, but in the mid-afternoon of a Wednesday, on one of the busiest arteries of our city: it is really difficult to think that no one is able to reveal a useful element to clarify.
So far, the only one who has had the opportunity to tell his version of events has been the man riding a Granturismo, who (it is a necessary act, in these cases) however is also under investigation. According to an initial reconstruction, around 4pm on 5 June, the centaur was traveling towards the Box Office when, at the intersection with Strada Casalunga and Via Pizzetti-Marore, he hit the 85-year-old professor on a bicycle. Among the hypotheses is that according to which the cyclist was hit by the motorcycle while he was turning towards Via Pizzetti. But it all remains to be proven: we are not even certain whether, at that moment, Del Chicca (who lived in the Via Zarotto area) was cycling to return home or whether he was leaving the city center for one of his usual bicycle trips.
The ambulance and medical vehicle sent by the 118 operations center arrived on site after a few minutes. In the eyes of the rescuers, the elderly cyclist’s condition appeared desperate from the first moments. Transported to the Maggiore, Del Chicca was admitted to intensive care, but every attempt to save him from death proved in vain: the professor passed away after nine days of agony.
As is customary in these cases, the Prosecutor’s Office ordered that the body be subjected to an autopsy, which was carried out on Wednesday. In the meantime, Francesca Arienti had already on Monday entrusted engineer Stefano Redaelli with the task of reconstructing the dynamics of the accident through kinematic consultancy. The public prosecutor also ordered the acquisition of the recording of images from video cameras in the area. In the hope of adding at least one piece, we are also looking for videos of the many private remote surveillance circuits along Via Traversetolo.
