Tuesday 22nd August 2017

Citara Beach in Forio this afternoon.

Good afternoon everyone, this is my second update on what has been a very unusual day for us all in Ischia, to say the least. As the day has unfolded the picture of what happened last night has become much clearer and much of the worrying mystery taken out of the situation. Just to recap, last night around 9pm there was an earthquake in the area of upper Casamicciola, recorded between 3.6 and 4 in terms of magnitude. Although very brief, the earthquake caused severe damage to the Piazza Maio area with several buildings collapsing. Two people sadly died, one lady after being hit by falling masonry from a church and another after being buried in rubble under her own home. Between 20 and 40 people were also recorded as suffering injuries resulting from the damage ​but most of those injuries were thankfully of a minor nature. At times there have been reports of people being trapped in rubble from the half or dozen or so buildings that collapsed, amongst these, three brothers who have now all been rescued. 

In what has been an extraordinary day full of worry, stress and anguish, the one thing that has really caught our attention is the support that so many of you have shown for this beautiful island. Many of you that have either been here already or have a trip planned in the near future have overwhelmed us with your sympathy, kindness and positive comments for which we can't express our gratitude strongly enough. 

Many of you have asked if it's still safe to travel to Ischia or if there is likely to be any travel disruption. Over the next couple of days it's likely that queues at the ports might be a bit longer than usual but to all intents and purposes the island is very much open for business and there's a determined willingness of the people to simply get on with things. We're not going to turn a blind eye to the sadness created by the lost lives and lost homes but if you walk around the island now, aside from the areas around the ports you'll find most people are going about their business as they normally would, working, relaxing on the beach or eating in the restaurants. Throughout the day we've carried out lots of airport transfers, boat rentals and other activities without a hitch and we're already a considerable way along the road to recovery. 

Once again I'd like to thank everybody for their overwhelming display of support for ourselves at Ischia Review and the island as a whole, something that's touched us all greatly. Please continue to write in to us with your questions about travel and any other concerns you may have. As always we'll give you our honest, friendly advice so that you can continue to enjoy this island paradise along with us. 

Today's photo by the way was taken at Citara Beach in Forio around 3pm. As you can see, despite the little test we've had we're back on our feet again and basking in the glorious summer sunshine. 

​Back with more soon, Dion Protani :-) 4pm Tuesday 22nd August 2017