ITALIAN JOURNEY – PROGRAMME 1

Welcome to our Italian journey.

Our two presenters, Gabriella Facondo, an Italian journalist, and James McConnachie, a British writer and journalist, would like you to discover Italy as you’ve never seen it before. You will be shown famous Italian cities in a completely new way, will be introduced to lesser-known towns and villages and will be taken on a mesmerising journey through the Italian landscape. We will also give you the opportunity to see original works of art, meet unique characters and find out more about Italy’s culture from a wide range of perspectives.

VENICE - VENICE’S FIRE BRIGADE

There is no other place in the world that evokes water more than Venice does- and everyone knows Venice is sinking.

But is Venice burning? Well actually, it is. La Fenice, the city’s most famous theatre, has burnt down three times. Venice is fragile in more ways than one; it is so unique that it requires a special kind of protection. Can you think of any other city where the easiest way of getting to a fire is to hop on a motorboat? As far as the fire brigade in Venice is concerned, safety comes first, aesthetic charm second. The brigade uses its great courage and versatility to overcome the many logistical nightmares caused by the city’s maze of small and narrow canals. 

Gabriella talks to Tiziano Trabucco, one of Venice’s firemen, to find out more about the type of problems the brigade is confronted with in this city built on water.

Tiziano Trabucco: It’s entirely made of wood, like the others, but the difference is this one is brand new.

Gabriella: Tell me, were your boats built specifically to deal with very narrow canals?

Tiziano Trabucco: Yes, this type of boat is slightly longer than the norm. This allows us to go on rougher seas if we want to travel away from the centre. We still have to keep the length down to around nine meters, otherwise it wouldn’t be manageable in the smaller canals. We also have a maximum height that takes into account the effects of high and low tide on the boat’s leeway under bridges.

Gabriella: And I guess you also have to be careful in terms of speed to make sure you don’t damage the fabric of the city?

Tiziano Trabucco: Well yes, we can’t go any faster than 60 kilometres per hour, because we have to be very careful not to…collide into other boats when we’re, when we’re called out.

Gabriella: And where do you get your water? Do you have hoses on board?

Tiziano Trabucco: We have a pump on board and it pumps up the water directly from the sea, from the lagoon. But we try to use as little water as possible, only when it’s absolutely necessary, because salt water is damaging in itself – water is already damaging, but salt water is worse.

Gabriella: So in other words all the interventions you perform on these motorboats are very delicate.

Tiziano Trabucco: The important thing is that we try and adapt all our methods to this city.

But why is Venice so vulnerable?

Fire Chief Mander explains why.

Fire Chief Mander: The fact is, Venice is very different from other cities. It’s made entirely out of wood: all the roofs, beams, under crofts – they’re all made out of wood. We’re not on dry land, there’s no reinforced concrete here. There’s also quite a lot of carelessness among old people: generally they’re looked after by social services, but in the mornings they’re left alone, and sometimes they start fires, or get into trouble.

Gabriella: Isn’t it also dangerous when people carry out repair works on their homes?

Fire Chief Mander: Yes, accidents do happen. For example during roof repairs, when the workmen heat up the tar, you know, the type of tar they use as an undercoat to insulate a building from the rain, well sometimes they heat it up with a flame and that can lead to all the beams in the roof catching alight.

Gabriella: After the fire at La Fenice did you have to install a new security system to ensure Venice was better protected?

Fire Chief Mander: The best idea we’ve come up with so far is this network of water pumps we’re going to set up all over the city. There are three of them in Venice itself now, and another is being built on the island of San Marco. They built the first pump next to the State Archives, which was a priority: they’re tried to target high-risk locations first.

Gabriella: How long have you been working in this station?

Fire Chief Mander: I’ve been here since 1964, so 36 years.

Gabriella: So you’ve seen it all! What does this profession mean to you? What’s so special about Venice’s fire station?

Fire Chief Mander: This fire station has a real history for me, I’m sorry to be leaving in eight months. Sometimes I wish time could stand still and I could stay here forever as a fire officer.