WW2 LEGHORN UNDER THE BOMBS

And ‘May 28, 1943 and for the first time since he started the Second World War, the city of Livorno undergoes an air raid “THE BLIND” from allies. It all starts at eleven o’clock in the morning, when the population, accustomed to the curfew with that expectation of a distressing event which sooner or later would have known, but what is being done in those who did not expect in the day, now become the daily activities of war against a tough and powerful invader. Suddenly contemporary and terrifying wail of warning sirens disrupts the lives of the locals, which taken by terror are quick to take shelter in shelters. And ‘the attack that has long expected; and certainly the cynical coldness of the Allies would not have saved him.

How many times had heard passing over their heads the deafening noise of the flying fortresses returning from their raids and how many times they thanked God for being back escaped a tragedy. Now it was their turn. That day, however, Livorno hand touched his first bombing, or as they called the British, “area bombing”.

The effect of this dramatic tactical air strike was aimed at crippling the essential services of the city and with them its industries. In this regard already Churchill, during the first English attack in Foggia, which had cost 22,000 victims, once said that he had “coventrizzata”. That fateful morning of May 28, 1943 the “coventrizzazione” touched in Livorno. Twenty-five minutes after they had played the sirens, Livorno was submerged by iron and fire. The first launch of upheaval bombs the city. The roofs, walls and entire buildings blown up and falling debris everywhere were causing more damage and casualties.

Livorno was struck both in the whole northern area than downtown. The most affected areas were the cathedral and Piazza Grande, the port, the district of Venice, the area of the synagogue (at that time the most beautiful d ‘Europe), the market and d’Azeglio stop. It was the latter the place that suffered the most casualties in a single day: below the level of the road that runs along the stopovers an emergency shelter had been set up where people sought protection during the bombing; but the shelter area was hit by a powerful aerial bomb, and over two hundred people were buried. It was not possible to extract no one alive from the ruins and even recover the bodies to return them to the families: the rubble came pouring lime and most of the dead still lying buried under there.

This was followed by more than a hundred other bombings, which killed more than 1,300 people (mostly civilians, as unfortunately happens in all wars), collapsed or were damaged tens of thousands of homes, there were 20,000 displaced persons. Also destroyed were the cathedral, the railway station, the harbor station, port facilities, industrial area. From Venice to Piazza Magenta, Via Mastacchi in Italy avenue, there was isolated that had not been damaged. It took decades because the city could recover from those wounds not only material.