Bodies strewn across the asphalt, car parts scattered everywhere. These are the tangible signs of yet another road tragedy that occurred on the Ionian state road 106. It is an Epiphany of pain and tears that coincides with the death of four young people, all originally from San Luca, who met their death yesterday at lunchtime on a stretch of the “killer” road in the Montauro area, in a few kilometers from Catanzaro. Two cars were involved in the accident, a Fiat Idea and a Fiat Panda, which, according to what emerged from the initial findings, collided head-on. The victims were traveling aboard the Fiat Panda and their death was instantaneous. There was only one person in the other car who was injured and was transported to the “Pugliese” hospital in Catanzaro. The Panda in which the four victims were traveling was headed towards the province of Reggio Calabria, while the Fiat Idea driven by the person who was seriously injured was proceeding north.
The rescue and the victims
The rescuers – the teams of the Chiaravalle and Soverato fire brigades intervened as well as the 118 health workers and the Soverato Carabinieri – arrived on site and found themselves faced with an apocalyptic scene. For the occupants of the Fiat Panda, every intervention proved in vain. The young victims, all originally from San Luca, were called Antonella Romeo (21 years old), Teresa Giorgi (34 years old), Elisa Pelle (24 years old), Domenico Romeo (27 years old). The injured person, however, is a 52-year-old from Soverato but his life is not in danger.
The state road remained closed to traffic in the affected section to allow all the operations to remove the vehicles and bodies. Only after the authorization of the public prosecutor on duty was it possible to proceed with the reopening of the large road artery that connects the entire Ionian ridge.
The dynamics of the accident
Investigators are naturally working to establish what really happened. The extremely violent impact left no escape for the young occupants of the car traveling southbound. It is not the first time that major road accidents have occurred on that stretch – with limited visibility due to the presence of a treacherous curve. To make everything more complicated, the asphalt was made slippery by the heavy rain that fell yesterday. In some places State Road 106 is wide and comfortable, but in others it is narrow and characterized by long straights that lead to increased speed. Furthermore, it does not have a central traffic divider, with the consequent risk of crossing lanes and invading the opposite one. Hence the frequent head-on collisions, with victims and injuries.
Structural limits
Beyond the future reconstruction of the dynamics of the collision between the two cars, the serious inadequacy of the stretch of state road that crosses the territory cannot be overlooked, similar to those approximately thirty kilometers which, in a southerly direction, lead to the province of Reggio between single carriageway, treacherous tunnels, dangerous intersections, narrow emergency lanes (if not non-existent), curves with poor visibility, crossing towns, bridges dating back to a century ago. And consistent traffic, not only during the summer when the queues become kilometers long, with exhausting travel times, near the numerous seaside resorts. This which was the scene of the tragic accident is probably one of the worst stretches of 106, where the crosses are a sad contrast to the milestones, with slopes and dimensions which, thanks to the wet asphalt, require more cautious driving than usual to try to have full control of the car.