Firefighters in Sicily rescue 400 rare books from library after landslide | Italy
Firefighters in Sicily rescued nearly 400 rare books from a library hanging at the edge of a mudflow in Niscemi after a devastating landslide in January leveled the town’s entire slope and opened a 4km cliff.
The library stands on the edge of the cliff carved by the landslide, and part of the building is actually suspended in the air. A detailed study of floor plans and interior photographs was carried out to map the location of the books before the rescue operation, which began on Monday.
Fire crews penetrated the wall of the building behind the building and entered for minutes, tied the bookcases together and pulled them backwards to reach the books.
The library holds approximately 4,000 books of literature, history and general non-fiction, including a number of rare editions from before 1830 on Sicilian history. Among his most valuable treasures is a book from the 16th century.
“It was like committing a bank robbery,” said Salvatore Cantale, district commander of the fire department in Caltanissetta. “We had to be quick and try to get as much as we could.”
A drone streamed live aerial images to a monitor on the ground, while laser sensors fixed to the swing section above the drop were used to detect the slightest movement. A separate device monitored vibrations and slight changes in the building’s slope.
The landslide began on January 25, when the ground began to slide, cracking asphalt and tearing down buildings. Some of them later collapsed into the void along with the road where cars and pickup trucks were parked. More than 1,600 people were evacuated from the town.
Most of the volumes are located in the basement, which is considered the most risky area. Although there are no suitable robots in Niscemi, officials are considering the use of robots.
“If we can find the robot, we will use it immediately. Otherwise, we will have to wait,” Cantale said. “The problem is that this building is actually a single reinforced concrete structure. If it collapsed, it would just disappear.”
Cantale said geologists working alongside firefighters expected the front of the landslide to retreat another 10 to 15 meters, dragging other buildings, including the library, downhill with it.
“According to geologists, it is more likely that the library will slide downhill as a single block rather than breaking apart. We have already assessed that in such a case, it may actually be easier to recover the remaining books after they fall.”
Some of Italy’s most famous writers called on the authorities: save the collectionIt is located in the “black zone”.
Stefania Auci, author of the bestselling novel Florios the Sicilian He told Adnkronos news agency: “I don’t know if our appeal actually helped save some of those old volumes, but I like to think it played at least a small part.”
