Work is underway in the dark to try to put out the blaze on the San Gregorio hill , which has devastated and reduced to a cemetery hundreds of hectares of woodland and Mediterranean scrub, pine trees and other tall trees, also attacking and damaging courtyards and the exterior of some homes in San Paolo and San Gregorio, hamlets of Sinnai, on the old Orientale Sarda .
The damage is extensive. Canadairs and helicopters (six aircraft intervened, including one from the Italian Air Force) have poured tons of water from the sea onto the blaze. The situation is still difficult . On the ground, firefighters, forest rangers, and volunteers from Masise and Vab are trying to put out the remaining blazes.
It appears (but this remains to be verified) that the flames started on the Vecchia Orientale Sarda road , near San Paolo. What is certain is that they quickly reached San Gregorio, a hamlet of Sinnai, damaging several homes and coming dangerously close to others and the Casa Monsignor Angioni, a retirement home run by nuns. The building was evacuated as a precaution, and the nuns and their guests were taken away in a van and escorted by local police . Dozens of residents in the area were evacuated as a precaution.
In the Sao Paulo area , fire engulfed the courtyard of a home containing two women, a mother and daughter . Despite difficulties with telephone connections, a team of volunteers managed to reach the home and rescue the two women, who are safe as the flames only damaged the courtyard.
There was also disruption on the Eastern Highway, which was closed as a precaution and to facilitate the movement of emergency vehicles. It was a terrible day.
The area relives the tragedy of a few years ago when, again along the Vecchia Orientale, a fire hit the Burranca area, incinerating the undergrowth and tall trees.
Another disaster. The emergency isn't over; the site needs to be secured and remediated. Then the full assessment will be made, and the damage—environmental and otherwise—appears significant. It's destined to leave its mark for years to come. A huge black stain and a tree cemetery, one of the most beautiful forests in the area has been burned to the ground .
The Forestry Corps will investigate the cause of the fire, which appears to have started on the road.