Grasshoppers, the mayors of the Nuoro area: "There is a risk of another catastrophe in the countryside"

Anger is rampant, it goes hand in hand with discouragement. «The grasshoppers have arrived on the outskirts of Ottana, near the sports field. It will be unprecedented devastation. Why doesn't Laore increase the forces on the field? We urgently need new means, more men: otherwise, let's prepare for the worst". Mayor Franco Saba makes the drama clear, he fears that the situation is now irrecoverable. The first citizen of Noragugume, Rita Zaru, instead tries to keep calm, although the snapshots arriving from the countryside are not comforting: «There are grasshoppers, they are in large numbers, but we are obtaining results. Of course, now we need to step up operations on the ground».

The mayors ask to be able to count on a more substantial team, other men and means to add to the current squad fielded by Laore.

Rampant discontent

Concern abounds, winds its way through the countryside and invades towns. The locusts grow menacing. There are several countries involved. The numbers pitted by the Laore operations center, set up in the Noragugume area, reveal commitment but also tell of an enormous mountain that appears almost impossible to climb. At the moment there are 1746 points treated by exterminators, starting from 20 March; 2555, on the other hand, are the points where grasshopper egg hatchings were monitored; finally, 456 reports arrived in the dedicated Deomarco application, while 485 hectares of land were "investigated".

«The situation is worrying», comments Rita Zaru: «We ask that the forces in the field be increased. More disinfestation machines and less “scouting”, monitoring is no longer needed».

The mayor of Ottana, Franco Saba, confirms: «One detail must be taken into account: today they are carrying out an average of 40 disinfestations a day. Here, in my opinion they should have made at least a hundred, to be able to deal with all the reports received. We have to do the maximum by May 20-25. Try everything possible before the locusts start flying. Otherwise, the consequences could be catastrophic."