The supervolcano near Naples continues to terrorize people with violent tremors. Experts believe it is the biggest crisis since the last outbreak in 1538.
Early on Tuesday afternoon (April 16), over 50 tremors were recorded within 24 hours in the Phlegraean Fields in western Naples. On Sunday (April 14th), the approximately 500,000 residents of the risk zone were shaken more than 100 times - with shocks with a magnitude of up to 3.7. People were at their wits' end, and many ran back onto the streets. "My stomach was infected with fear and I couldn't stay at home," writes one user on Facebook. In fact, the current series of earthquakes is probably the most violent seismic crisis since 485 years ago. At that time, Monte Nuovo was formed west of the port city of Pozzuoli during an eruption. When Monte Nuovo erupted in 1538, there were even tremors of magnitude 8. 25 centimeters of ash covered the city's roofs, causing many of them to collapse. De Natale urges that the ongoing inspection of all buildings in the red zone for their earthquake safety be accelerated. "It has to happen quickly and with the greatest possible speed because a stronger earthquake, even much stronger than today's, can occur at any time, even if we cannot know exactly when," he says. Other scientists also warn of a tsunami that would hit the area in the event of an eruption in the sea. Others think about personal consequences that go further: "it doesn't help, we have to move north," writes a Facebook user in the group "Those in the Red Zone." "A few days ago, the municipal urban development plan was approved after 48 years, which includes the work for the dismantling of the Torregaveta train station and the construction of the most important escape route for Bacoli," says the mayor.