'Guardian Angels'. That's what they were called by a man who, along with his twelve-year-old son, was saved by two police officers from the Aversa police station. What happened was recounted in a letter of thanks written by the unfortunate man and addressed to his rescuers. On July 4, around 20:30 p.m., Salvatore Loffredo, a 39-year-old from Naples, was driving his Lancia Ypsilon along the state road 7 bis with one of his sons when, near Frignano, he suddenly noticed a police car waving him over.
“Once we stopped,” says the 39-year-old Neapolitan, “we noticed flames coming out of the hood of my car and the air conditioning vent. In panic, we couldn’t unbuckle our seat belts to leave the car, which was now on fire. The policeman, with strength and speed, managed to unbuckle my seat belt. In the meantime, the other officer arrived and did the same with my son’s seat belt, picking us up and carrying us to safety at a safe distance from the car. From that position,” he continues, “watching what was happening to my car, I realized how lucky I had been. My son in tears, hugging one of the police officers, made me understand that they are not only men trained to deal with dangerous situations, but also human beings, fathers and friends. They calmed us down and with their words made us feel safe, allowing us to experience this tragic episode with serenity, without trauma. The two policemen stayed with us until the end, until the tow truck came to pick us up to take us home." "My son Saverio - Loffredo concludes in his letter - has decided that when he grows up he wants to be a policeman and during the way home he did nothing but talk about how good those two officers were, forgetting, putting in the background the danger we faced, the tragedy during which we risked our lives."
Words of praise were also expressed by Loffredo for the professionalism shown by the operator of the Operations Room of the Aversa Police Station who promptly called the firefighters of the Norman detachment who in turn immediately took steps to put out the fire.
Gustavo Gentile
Article published on 16 July 2019 - 14:17
