The sad flight of the red “Drago 148” cuts the sky of Sicily shortly after midday. But it’s not a fairy tale, it’s not a fantastic creature. It is the Fire Brigade helicopter that on a cursed summer Thursday goes to drop off the speleologist divers in a meadow in Palazzolo Acreide, in the Syracuse area. There is an atrocious mission to accomplish: save a 10-year-old boy who has fallen into an artesian well.
The specialists tried, but they failed. The child had already drowned a few minutes before: with him was a 54-year-old woman, one of the teachers at the summer camp where the tragedy occurred, who did not hesitate to lower herself into the hole with a rope in a courageous attempt to save the boy.
According to initial reconstructions, the minor climbed onto the lid of the well, which however gave way, causing him to fall into the water. He was 10 years old and was participating, together with his disabled brother, in a “Cre” organized by the Palazzolo Acreide Doniamo Sorrisi Foundation, affiliated with Anffas.
“While waiting for full clarity on this terrible tragedy – commented the national president of the organization Roberto Speziale – the whole of Anffas stands by the family of this child and his little brother with disabilities”. The disabled children had been involved for days in excursions and integration activities with able-bodied children and volunteers, such as growing vegetables and cooking workshops. Carefree hours, to spend having fun in the summer heat. Yesterday a day on the farm was planned, which ended cruelly.
The victim is said to have moved away from some swings and then fallen into the 15-meter sinkhole, which was half full of water. Her rescuer went down the tunnel, but slipped and ended up on the bottom. She was recovered in shock by divers, along with the little body next to her. A tragedy that inevitably brought to mind that of Alfredino Rampi, the 6-year-old boy who died in 1981 in an artesian well in Vermicino, near Rome, after 60 hours of desperate attempts to save him.
The Syracuse prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation for manslaughter, currently against unknown persons. The responsibilities of the landowner need to be ascertained (it is necessary to understand whether the well was marked and made safe) and any shortcomings on the part of the companions, understandably tried by the incident.
Another tragedy in Avellino
In Montemarano, in the province of Avellino, another tragedy occurred: a seven-year-old boy, Domenico Galluccio, lost his life while playing in the courtyard of his home. The death, which occurred on Wednesday evening, around 8:00 p.m., was caused by the fall of a heavy iron table, with which the boy was playing. According to the carabinieri, the piece of furniture was leaning against the wall, upright, for reasons yet to be verified: suddenly it fell and hit Domenico on the head, causing him a fatal trauma.
The child, the only child of a couple who lives in the rural district of Macchia del Monte, was about to go with his parents to the patronal festival taking place in a nearby hamlet. Mayor Beniamino Palmieri immediately canceled the concert in Povia and the celebrations planned for the patron saints San Giovanni and Paolo. Also shocked were the teachers and friends of the second year of primary school that Domenico attended in the detached school in Montemarano of the “A. Di Meo”, which has its headquarters in Volturara. In the small town, where around 2,500 inhabitants live, citizen mourning has been called: the child’s funeral will be celebrated this morning. «A tragedy that leaves us speechless – commented the mayor – and throws us into a state of profound pain. We have a duty to mourn this child who passed away so soon and to rally around his family.”
