A Ferragosto that risked turning into a tragedy for a family from Cittanova, in the Reggio area, on a trip to Aspromonte. In front of the incredulous gaze of her parents and uncles, little Iolanda, aged 5 months, began to shut down and no longer react to stimuli.. After failing to wake her up and realizing that the little girl had stopped breathing, the parents decided to rush to the nearest hospital in Polistena, in the Piana di Gioia Tauro.
A difficult journey, lasting more than half an hour, on a road clogged with holidaymakers’ cars. Luckily, not far away there was a patrol of the Carabinieri from the Provincial Command of Reggio Calabria who, with sirens blaring, opened the way for the car in which the little girl was travelling. Along the way, the soldiers contacted their Operations Centre by radio, requesting the intervention of an ambulance further down the valley and the assistance of other patrols. in the circuit to clear the streets and block the intersections to their passage. In a race against time the two cars reached Cittanova. Here, Iolanda was made to sit in the 118 car together with her mother and father and the medical staff immediately began cardiopulmonary resuscitation maneuvers. Having regained rhythm and breathing, the ambulance, escorted by the Carabinieri, left in red code towards the hospital in Polistena, where he was able to receive the necessary care.. She is now out of danger. “It is thanks to them that I can still hold my little Iolanda in my arms” commented Giuseppe, the baby’s father, thanking the two soldiers who intervened immediately, both on duty at the Cittanova Station.