Ragalna, requested the state of crisis to the Region

The municipal administration of Ragalna has submitted a request to the Region of Sicily for the proclamation of a state of crisis related to the earthquake of March 4, which caused damage to both private buildings and public structures. This was announced by the mayor of Ragalna, Nino Caruso, at the end of a technical meeting with members of the municipal council and technicians from the relevant municipal offices.

"We have made a specific request to the president of the Region of Sicily, Renato Schifani, and for information, we have also forwarded the request to prefect Pietro Signoriello, who recently conducted an inspection in the city - emphasized Mayor Nino Caruso - the situation is worsening day by day. From the inspections carried out, the count of damages is inexorably increasing, it is still too early to quantify them; we must proceed with the utmost caution."

In numerical terms, there have been 328 reports made by property owners to the regional Civil Protection for inspections. So far, 100 checks have been completed, resulting in 64 buildings being deemed safe, 27 partially safe, while 9 have been declared completely unsafe. So far, 17 people have been displaced. "For those whose homes are unsafe, the municipality has provided assistance and placed them in accommodation facilities in the area, while the others have found shelter with friends and relatives," continued Caruso, who reiterated that the two city churches have also been declared unsafe, highlighting that soon there will be interventions to secure the belfry of the parish of Madonna del Carmelo located in piazza Cisterna, which is partially closed to vehicular and pedestrian traffic.

"From the joint meeting, which included firefighters, regional Civil Protection, and municipal offices, it was decided to develop a project to eliminate the danger posed by the spire, and then there will be a second phase that will be discussed in detail," concluded the mayor of Ragalna. The areas of the municipality primarily affected continue to be via Dante Alighieri, via Paternò, via Villaggio San Francesco, the area of piazza Cisterna. Several roads are closed to vehicular traffic.