tourism-italia.com

As you have all probably heard by now, a devastating earthquake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale hit the city of L’Aquila early this morning killing more than 134 people, according to Reuters. Rescue workers are struggling through rain to try and save those who are still trapped. The earthquake hit around 3:30am this morning and many people were still asleep. Many houses, churches and other buildings have been destroyed and the number of homeless people is around 50,000. Silvio Berlusconi has declared a national emergency and flown to the affected area. His cabinet is said to be providing €30 million for emergency assistance. My heartfelt condolences go out to those affected by the earthquake.

The continually poor conditions at the ruins of Pompeii are finally being addressed by Silvio Berlusconi’s new government. It is a great shame that one of the worlds most important cultural sites has been so badly maintained over the years. For such a well-known tourist attraction, there are currently no restaurants and only 3 toilets, with so-called ‘parking wardens’ running loose and unregulated. Berlusconi will appoint a special commissioner to resolve the issues at the Pompeii site, which in recent years has suffered from falling visitor numbers. I congratulate Mr. Berlusconi on being the person to stand up and finally do something to preserve the cultural experience of such an important heritage site.