Will a Super Volcano Destroy Part of Italy, as with Ancient Pompeii? By Richard Miller (In Italy on Business)
I am in Italy on business for the firm until the end of the month. I happened to get on my newsfeed the latest YouTube by Redacted "Get Out NOW! Italy is about EXPLODE and millions will die! Why are they ignoring it."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwI5sMG28Gg&t=483s.
If I was not here I would have dismissed this, but a quick internet search confirmed that there is a geophysical danger erupting:
https://theweek.com/science/italy-volcano-activity-risk
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-huge-italian-volcano-could-be-ready-to-erupt/
Pozzuoli Italy, is a densely populated area that has the most dangerous volcano in Europe, consisting of 24 hidden underground craters, the Campi Flegrei. This supervolcano is far larger than Vesuvius, which destroyed the ancient Roman city of Pompeii in A.D. 79. A few days ago, Pozzuoli experienced a 4.4 earthquake. This has led to further speculation that the big one is coming:
"For Michele Buonomo of environmental campaign group Legaambiente, the problem has never been addressed "because it's not profitable, and it's always seemed too big to resolve. Where could you send all these people?"
Italy tends to react well to disasters but does little to mitigate them beforehand, he said: "This country has one of the best civil protection services in the world but it only reacts to emergencies. There is no prevention," he told POLITICO.
While it's impossible to predict with certainty when Campi Flegrei might erupt, when it finally does so the impact could be devastating. Its last eruption in 1538 led to the formation of a mountain. And a massive blowout 40,000 years ago cloaked much of eastern Europe with ash — with traces found as far away as today's Russia.
Buonomo said that the danger to the public could be mitigated by rehousing local people elsewhere. This would make it easier to evacuate those who remain in an emergency, he argued. Homes and schools for those who remain must be made safe, and residents should be informed about what to do an in an emergency — with evacuation tests.
Muscarà presented legislation last year to the regional parliament banning new construction and incentivizing people to leave, but says her proposals were ignored and languished "in a drawer."
Hopefully the angry earth will go back to sleep once more. But if not, disaster looms, and reports indicate that the problem is not being treated as a matter of urgency; too much money at stake here.
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