It was a solemn commitment, made in the aftermath of the tragedy: “We will never forget you.” And here are your names: Monica Balascuta, Carmela Maria Barbera, Santi Bellomo, Carmela Cacciola, Giuseppa Calogero, Concetta Cannistraci, Roberto Carullo, Luigi Costa, Ketty De Francesco, Elena De Luca, Francesco De Luca, Ilaria De Luca, Agnese Falgetano, Letterio Laganà, Maria Li Causi, Francesco Lonia, Lorenzo Lonia, Teresa Macina, Leo Maugeri, Christian Maugeri, Letterio Maugeri, Francesca Micali, Simone Neri, Carmela Olivieri, Katia Panarello, Santina Porcino, Maria Restuccia, Carmelo Ricciardello, Martino Scibilia, Bartolo Sciliberto, Maria Letizia Scionti, Salvatore Scionti, Alessandro Sturiale, Onofrio Sturiale, Giuseppe Tonante, Salvatore Zagami. And then the unknown name of that never identified body.
Once again Messina does not forget the 37 victims of the Giampilieri and Scaletta Zanclea floods. One of the most tragic moments in the recent history of a city that has experienced ruins and destruction, earthquakes and war bombings, but which has always been able to recover. As did the communities of the territories affected 17 years ago by the flow of mud and debris that came down from the mountains and flowed into a sea that for weeks, in that cursed October of 2009, took on a gray and brown hue, the colors of devastation and death.
The 17th anniversary will be celebrated with moments of prayer in all the centers of the valley, from Giampilieri Superiore to Molino and Altolia, from Santa Margherita to Briga. Mass will be held in Giampilieri at 7pm, followed by the ceremony in front of the monument dedicated to the victims, with the calling of names and the touching of the bell tower of the mother church.
The municipal administration of Scaletta Zanclea and the parish community, as our correspondent Gianni Chirieleison recalls, have organized commemorative initiatives. In the morning a pilgrimage is planned in the Foraggine and Divieto districts. At 6.30 pm in the Madonna del Carmelo church in Scaletta Marina, after a prayer meeting, the Eucharistic celebration will be held presided over by the Reverend Gianfranco Pistorino, head of the local parish. A particular thought will be addressed to Santino Bellomo, Carmelina Cacciola, Carmelo Ricciardello, Ketty De Francesco and Alessandro Sturiale, whose bodies swallowed by the impetuous waters flooded by the Racinazzi and Divieto torrents and dragged into the sea, were never found and were not able to have a worthy burial. At the end of the religious ceremony, a procession, led by the banner of the Ionian municipality, will reach the Foraggine district, the symbolic place of the tragedy, and a laurel wreath and bundles of flowers will be placed at the foot of the stele.