The diocesan civil protection unit has renewed the roles of the board of directors which will lead the volunteering organization in the three-year period 2024-2027. Reconfirmed as president Luciano Venutoin his fifth term, the third consecutive. They will be alongside him Giuseppe Venuto (vice president), Matilde Chiarenza (secretary), Don Enzo Maestri (treasurer) – who is also an ecclesiastical assistant of reality – and the councillors Daniela De Salvo, Angela Frisone, Gaspare Venuto, Santa Veneziano And Matteo Visicaro. An important reality in the area is that of the diocesan unit, linked to the regional Department of Civil Protection, always ready in emergencies – not least those of Stromboli and the summer fires which, especially in 2023, destroyed entire wooded areas in the city and in the province – the volunteers are characterized for an exclusive proximity commitment.
The association (today made up of 46 volunteers), which began operating in the area in 1998 thanks to the support and coordination of successive Caritas directors, since 2009 following the tragedy of the Giampilieri flood has extended its skills to other sectors of intervention (fire spotting, resuscitation and first aid, field logistics and recovery of material cultural heritage), logistically supporting the activities of the municipal Civil Protection and Fire Brigade and promoting the dissemination of the culture of prevention and social recovery of seismic, hydrogeological, industrial, scholastic and environmental risk.
“The ecclesial root of our reality, the first at a national level officially recognized among those promoted by Caritas as a specific action group of the Civil Protection – said President Venuto – provides a close collaboration with the archbishop and with the various lay groups in the area for the management of events linked to popular piety, especially processions”. In addition to this, the Unit guarantees the management of order and safety also in various artistic initiatives such as large concerts. “I wish everyone to continue walking with responsibility, dedication and team spirit, aware of the service we provide to the community”.