Evacuation in Barbarano di Salò for Rock Spur Operation Safety Measures
Approximately fifty families will need to evacuate from Barbarano di Salò on Tuesday, February 29, due to the operation rock spur. The Civil Engineering department has allocated the necessary funds to remediate the wall along via Seriola, eliminating the danger hanging over passersby. As a result, residents will leave their homes for the entire day, returning in the evening.
Law enforcement agencies (firefighters, urban police, traffic police, carabinieri, forest corps, volunteers, civil protection) held a coordination meeting to establish organizational procedures. The residents have been informed of the mayor’s “temporary evacuation order”.
On Tuesday, at 7:30 AM, a car equipped with a loudspeaker will patrol the street to notify residents of the operation’s start. Several patrols will then enter the homes to ensure no one remains inside. The only exception will be granted to a few disabled individuals and certain ill persons. Afterwards, experts will place explosive charges and proceed to blow up the spur. The expected completion time is 7:00 PM. If necessary, operations will continue overnight.
Preparations and technical interventions
Pasquale Maggi, the logistics councilor, has booked a hotel. The Civil Engineering team has reserved the possibility to continue work on March 8 and 17. The area is quite unstable and may require further intervention.
Via Seriola, adjacent to the stream, was closed to vehicle and pedestrian traffic on October 27, “to safeguard the safety of citizens from the imminent danger of landslide”. Geologist Michele Conti prepared a report urging the removal of vegetation, demolition of the rock using micro delayed charges, and the installation of anti-erosion metal nets. Lombardy Region approved the funding and authorized the project.
Now, engineer Mario Geroldi, director of the Salò municipality, has signed an ordinance urging the 50 families of Barbarano to take all necessary precautions within their homes to protect household items threatened by shifting air currents. The firing of the mines will be signaled with two trumpet blasts; the end of danger with one. Individuals who cannot be moved due to mobility issues, illness, or other reasons should be relocated to back rooms.
Windows facing the rocky wall should be kept open (but with shutters closed), or all windows should be closed. Turning off mobile phones is essential. The four access points will be monitored by law enforcement. Traffic on the 45 bis road, which is approximately 200 meters in a straight line, will not be affected and will flow normally.
“The stream bed has been abandoned — residents of Barbarano wrote in a petition —. There is a serious risk to the entire area, which is prone to hydrogeological hazards. Regular maintenance is required. In 1995, the Prosecutor’s Office was informed. However, despite the destabilizations, local administrations have never carried out the necessary radical interventions for permanent stabilization.”
After the September ’98 flood, about one hundred million lire were spent on urgent works to ensure essential services: roads, water supply, gas, and safety measures. Subsequently, the Civil Engineering department allocated around seventy million lire for dredging the river mouth and constructing a seawall adjacent to a group of old shacks. Additionally, 150 million lire were invested in river bed reshaping and substructures.
In April, during the “Green Clean Day,” volunteers cut down trunks blocking water flow. However, the flood issue can only be fully resolved by installing barriers, which are costly. The rock spur operation aims to improve safety. Some, rightly, also suggest restoring the trail leading to Banale — which has been partially closed for some time due to landslides — possibly by purchasing the old forge owned by a lady from Gardone Valtrompia. In the past, the site hosted millers, blacksmiths, and carpenters.
