“We cannot and we must not forget the 309 victims of the earthquake,” Draghi said.
“They are 309 angels.
“The earthquake is a deep wound inflicted on the community.”
Speaking at the new Parco della Memoria (Memorial Park), Draghi announced that €1.78 billion in funds, drawn from Italy’s national recovery and resilience plan (PNRR), would be allocated to the central Italian areas hit by earthquakes in 2009, 2016 and 2017.
He said the funding would be allocated to “safe and sustainable reconstruction, environmental recovery, and initiatives to support citizens and businesses”.
Earlier this year Italy marked the 12th anniversary of the 6.3-magnitude earthquake that struck L’Aquila in the early hours of April 6, 2009, killing 309 people, leaving 70,000 homeless and devastating more than 50 villages in the central Abruzzo region.
Many towns are yet to fully recover from the damage and rebuild.
#LAquila, Draghi: La mia presenza oggi vuole ribadire il dovere del ricordo. Il #Sisma2009 appartiene alla memoria collettiva. Non possiamo né dobbiamo dimenticare. Il #Parcodellamemoria è il simbolo della vita che rinasce traendo forza dalla memoria di una tragedia pic.twitter.com/JKW1GhDgUG
— Palazzo_Chigi (@Palazzo_Chigi) September 28, 2021
