Naples, sinkhole in Materdei: 40 people evacuated

NAPLES – Forty-seven hours of heavy rain have left a deep scar beneath Naples's surface. Twelve families were forced to abandon their apartments in Vico della Neve, in the heart of the Materdei neighborhood, leaving a total of forty people homeless due to the sudden subsidence.

The immediate evacuation order was issued by technicians and firefighters for safety reasons for the entire building adjacent to the abyss. Among the residents, some found temporary shelter with relatives and acquaintances, while others, amid the dramatic uncertainty of the first hours, spent the night in their cars.

 A 5-meter circular crater in the courtyard of the building

The nightmare materialized late Friday evening, near number 30 of the narrow street connecting Calata Fontanelle to Via Santa Teresa degli Scalzi. A circular crater about five meters in diameter suddenly opened, sucking a moped and a car with its driver into the void.

Only the prompt intervention of the neighbors, who quickly descended the emergency ladders before the arrival of the 118 rescue teams and the firefighters, averted the tragedy, allowing the man to resurface in shock but without fatal injuries.

The Materdei incident represents the tip of the iceberg of a critical two-day period for the entire metropolitan area, hit by a storm that prompted the Civil Protection Department to issue repeated weather warnings for flood risk. Over the past 48 hours, the provincial firefighters have completed over 150 interventions aimed at stemming basement flooding, widespread water damage, and structural damage.

  Two days of damage and disruption in Naples and its province

In Mergellina, a landslide on Via Fedro forced the precautionary evacuation of three families, while a landslide paralyzed traffic on the Soccavo ring road for a prolonged period. Severe disruption was also reported in the city center—where heavy water seeped into the corridors of the Courthouse—and near Via Guantai Nuovi, where a large tree collapsed.

The situation in the province's municipalities and in the area north of the capital is no less complex. In Giugliano, water flooded the lay-by and the entrance to the hospital emergency room, while the main roads in Qualiano and Villaricca were transformed into torrents of water and mud, submerging ground-floor shops and paralyzing dozens of passing vehicles.

While geological surveys continue in Materdei to identify any cavities and broken underground water pipes, the city is beginning a damage assessment in an area increasingly vulnerable to extreme rainfall.