Casalnuovo, a man sets fire to brushwood on the roadside and threatens a journalist.

Casalnuovo – Brushwood and garbage fires continue to ravage the roads of the province of Naples, transforming arterial roads into corridors of smoke and danger.

The latest, particularly serious, incident occurred in Casalnuovo, where a man intent on starting a fire on the side of the road threatened to kill a journalist who was documenting it.

It happened yesterday. The man, using flammable liquid, was setting fire to brushwood and trash along the road, with the flames reaching the roadway, endangering motorists and pedestrians. Reporter Gaetano Fioretti intervened and asked him to stop, highlighting the danger posed by the smoke and fire in a busy area.

The response was an explicit threat: "Go away, or I'll set you and your car on fire." Despite the intimidation, the journalist began filming the scene, documenting yet another illegal fire.

The man repeated the threats even as he was being filmed. The video was later handed over to the Carabinieri at the Casalnuovo station, where Fioretti filed a complaint for threats.

The incident refocuses attention on a chronic phenomenon: the indiscriminate burning of brushwood and waste along the roads of the Naples area, an illegal and dangerous practice that continues to be used to "clear" land, ditches, and uncultivated areas. This practice, especially during drier periods, causes fires that are difficult to control, reduces visibility on the roads, and releases potentially toxic fumes.

This isn't just environmental degradation, but a genuine public safety emergency. Flames burning near roadways can cause traffic accidents, while waste fires—often mixed with plastic—contribute to air pollution and increased health risks for those living in the surrounding areas.

The Casalnuovo case also highlights another alarming aspect: the climate of intimidation against those who attempt to report and document these crimes. Threatening a journalist while they're doing their job is an attempt to silence a scourge that has plagued vast areas of the province of Naples for years.

Now it's up to law enforcement to identify the perpetrator of the fire and the threats. Meanwhile, the image of streets transformed into open-air landfills and casually set ablaze lingers, while anyone who tries to report or stop these acts is verbally abused. This confirms how long the battle against illegal fires remains and how urgently tighter territorial control is needed.