Almost two years to the day after the collapse of the Genoa bridge (northeast) which left 43 dead in August 2018, Italy inaugurated a new viaduct on Monday, August 3, but without the families of the victims for whom these ceremonies are moved.
"We will not be present at the inauguration, we do not want the tragedy to end in carnival", had explained to AFP before the ceremony Egle Possetti, representative of the Committee of the relatives of the victims who lost in this tragedy his sister, her brother-in-law and two nephews.
“You can have a big party like this if the bridge was destroyed because it was old, a new one was built and no one died. "
"Between pain and pride"
On August 14, 2018, in driving rain, the Morandi motorway bridge, named after the engineer who designed it, an essential axis for trade with France but also for local journeys, collapsed, leading to its fall from dozens of vehicles, on the road to vacation or work. Among the 43 victims were four children.
Since then, Italy, reputed to be the champion of slowness in the execution of public works, has worked hard and completed the bridge in April, to the point where we speak today in the peninsula of the “Genoa model”.
The last section of the bridge, about a kilometer long, was laid at the end of April and since then, finishing work and safety tests have followed to allow its inauguration.
About ten days ago, 56 trucks each weighing 44 t, or some 2,500 t in total, tested its strength.
Newsletter - Most of the news
Every morning, the news seen by Le ParisienI'm registering
Your email address is collected by Le Parisien to enable you to receive our news and commercial offers. Learn more
The President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella was the first to officially cross the new bridge by car, designed by the famous architect Renzo Piano. "We are torn between pain and pride", commented the architect soberly.
The bridge is expected to be open to traffic on Tuesday or Wednesday after clearing the platform and props erected for the official opening.
