Torre del Greco: An elderly man and his dog were hit by a car on Via Cavallo; the "pirate" fled the scene.

Torre del Greco – A violent traffic accident on Via Cavallo left two people dead, a man and his inseparable four-legged friend, and sparked a hunt for a hit-and-run driver who fled the scene without providing assistance. The incident occurred on the evening of October 11th, casting a shadow over the safety of the Vesuvian city.

The drama of Salvatore and his dog

The main victim was Salvatore Pinto, an elderly former firefighter, who every evening performed his usual ritual: a walk along Via Cavallo with his dog. The impact occurred near the section between the railway bridge and the highway bridge.

According to the victim's testimony, the accident was caused by a two-wheeled vehicle—presumably a motorcycle or moped—whose driver, instead of stopping, fled immediately after the collision.

Salvatore Pinto was found on the ground by a passing woman, who immediately alerted emergency services. He was hospitalized with multiple injuries, particularly from hitting his head violently in the fall.

But tragedy also struck his faithful companion: the dog suffered very serious injuries and was rushed to hospital with a life-threatening condition due to severe bleeding, nearly losing his tongue.

Fortunately, the outcome, while still serious, was less tragic than expected: on Monday, October 13, the elderly former firefighter and his dog were able to return home, both escaping a potential fatality.

The dynamics of the incident, however, paint a broader picture: the violence of the accident wasn't caused solely by the elderly man being hit. At the same time, another collision occurred between a car and a scooter, resulting in serious injuries to the driver of the two-wheeler, a 28-year-old from Torre del Greco.

The young man was rushed to the Ospedale del Mare in Ponticelli and remains in critical condition. The exact role of this second scooter in Pinto's accident is currently unclear, but the entire area was the scene of a dramatic sequence of collisions.

Hunt for the escaped "pirate"

Torre del Greco authorities have launched a thorough investigation to identify and locate the driver of the scooter that struck Pinto and then fled the scene. Investigators are using surveillance cameras installed at the nearby highway roundabout and footage provided by local merchants. They hope the footage will provide useful information to identify the vehicle and, more importantly, the driver who chose to evade the obligation to provide assistance.