The five-meter firebreak is no longer sufficient: "It is my firm intention to urge the competent authorities to review these measures, considering the introduction of specific bans on crops near residential areas."
The mayor of Villaspeciosa, Gianluca Melis, is certain of this, having once again had to deal with a fire that threatened his community's homes.
Current laws require landowners to mow their land by creating a three-meter protective strip along their boundaries, which increases to five meters if the land is cultivated. This is too little, according to the mayor, who posted a revealing video: flames in a field reaching right up to houses.
"The repetition of such incidents, regardless of whether intentional or negligent, makes it clear that the awareness-raising tools used to date are no longer sufficient. The time has come for a change of pace," says the mayor.
The reflection begins with the consideration that "agricultural activity is a fundamental value for our community, and no one intends to hinder it. However, it cannot in any way prevail over the citizens' primary right to live in a safe environment. We cannot accept that the protection of a crop should be placed before the protection of people and homes."
For this reason, Melis announces that it has decided to push for more stringent measures to protect public safety.
His reasoning comes as the Cagliari area has been battling fires for hours. Civil Protection volunteers from the Quartu NOS report "scenes of terror among residents, with a nursing home threatened by flames" in Monastir and Nuraminis, where they were called to support local teams. To put out the fire and rescue those in the area, two Canadair helicopters were deployed yesterday alongside the regional firefighting fleet.