L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2025 www.italoamericano.org 26 L'Italo-Americano V e s u v i u s h a s shaped southern I t a l y f o r t h o u - sands of years, alternately nur- turing and threatening the communities that settled on its slopes. Its fertile soils have supported agriculture since prehistory, while its erup- t i o n s h a v e l e f t i n d e l i b l e marks on history, landscape, and collective memory. Ris- ing inside the older Somma caldera, the modern cone is part of a geological structure that records repeated cycles of construction and collapse. T h e m o s t r e c e n t e r u p t i o n took place in 1944 during World War II; the mountain h a s b e e n q u i e t s i n c e , b u t silence has never meant safe- ty. Continuous monitoring by the Osservatorio Vesu- viano and national civil pro- tection authorities reflects t h e u n d e r s t a n d i n g t h a t another eruption is a matter of time rather than possibili- ty. The volcano stands within the remains of a much larger s t r u c t u r e , M o n t e S o m m a , w h o s e c a l d e r a f o r m e d between 17,000 and 18,000 years ago during a massive explosive event. The current c o n e g r e w i n s i d e t h i s amphitheater, separated by the Valle del Gigante. This d o u b l e s t r u c t u r e e x p l a i n s both the beauty and the dan- g e r o f t h e a r e a : t h e o u t e r ridge frames the inner peak, creating the striking silhou- ette familiar from countless images of the Bay of Naples, but it also channels pyroclas- tic flows during major erup- tions. These flows, composed of hot gas and volcanic mate- rial, are among the main haz- ards considered in today's emergency plans. History gives a sense of what the mountain can do. The eruption of AD 79, which b u r i e d P o m p e i i , H e r c u l a - neum, and other settlements, remains the classic case of a Plinian event, with a high eruption column, heavy ash falls over long distances, and devastating surges that over- whelmed towns in minutes. Nearly five centuries later, in 472, another major eruption spread ash across the Adriat- ic, reaching Constantinople. In 1631, the volcano reassert- ed its power with a Plinian eruption that killed thou- sands, reshaped the slopes, and left records of possible tsunami activity in the Bay of Naples. From then on, activ- ity became more frequent but less cataclysmic, with r e g u l a r S t r o m b o l i a n a n d Vulcanian episodes continu- ing for centuries. The last of these came in March 1944, when lava flows damaged v i l l a g e s o n t h e s o u t h e r n s l o p e s a n d a s h f e l l o v e r Naples, while Allied troops stationed in the area docu- mented the event extensive- l y . A f t e r t h a t , t h e v e n t s closed, marking the longest period of dormancy in mod- ern history. Today, science and obser- v a t i o n h e l p i n b e i n g p r e - pared in case of an event coming: INGV's Osservato- rio Vesuviano keeps the vol- cano under constant surveil- l a n c e t h r o u g h s e i s m i c n e t w o r k s , G P S m e a s u r e - ments, gas analyses, thermal imaging, and satellite data. Civil Protection authorities have mapped risk zones and developed evacuation strate- gies that assign municipali- ties in the red zone, that is, those directly threatened by pyroclastic flows, to twin towns elsewhere in the coun- try. In case of unrest, evacu- ation would be ordered pre- v e n t i v e l y , w e l l b e f o r e a n eruption begins, to avoid the catastrophic scenarios of the p a s t . T h i s f r a m e w o r k i s updated periodically; the lat- e s t v e r s i o n , a p p r o v e d i n 2024, reflects new data and refined modeling. Communities around Vesuvius have long accept- ed that living in its shadow involves balancing risk and reward. The soils enriched by centuries of ash fall sup- port vineyards that produce w i n e s l i k e L a c r y m a Christi, as well as orchards and vegetable crops that sus- tain local economies. Towns a n d s u b u r b s c o n t i n u e t o expand on ancient lava flows and pyroclastic deposits, dri- v e n b y t h e p r o x i m i t y t o Naples and the fertility of the land. For many, staying is a practical choice shaped by work, heritage, and iden- tity. Civil protection plans a r e d e s i g n e d a r o u n d t h i s reality rather than against it, treating coexistence as a fact t o b e m a n a g e d , n o t a n anomaly to be corrected. Archaeology keeps the s t o r y o f V e s u v i u s a n d i t s people alive, even when the v o l c a n o s l e e p s . P o m p e i i , which has lain under meters of ash for centuries, is still y i e l d i n g d i s c o v e r i e s t h a t deepen our understanding of Roman urban life. Recent excavations in Regio IX, for instance, have revealed a "black room" decorated with mythological frescoes, a pri- vate bath complex used for e l i t e h o s p i t a l i t y , a n d Dionysian friezes that speak t o t h e c i t y ' s c u l t u r a l l i f e . Traces of limited reoccupa- tion after the eruption sug- gest that some inhabitants or outsiders briefly returned to the site, challenging the tra- ditional image of a sudden, final end. Ongoing work at Herculaneum, Oplontis, and other sites shows the diversi- ty of responses to disaster and the ways communities adapted, rebuilt, or relocated after eruptions. The mountain often finds itself mentioned alongside the restless Campi Flegrei, yet the two systems are dis- tinct: Vesuvius has a well- defined central conduit, a c l e a r h i s t o r i c a l r e c o r d o f eruption types, and a dedi- cated civil protection plan t a i l o r e d t o i t s h a z a r d s . Campi Flegrei, by contrast, is a caldera system with mul- tiple vents and a pattern of u n r e s t t h a t i s l e s s p r e - dictable; both are monitored by INGV as part of the same regional network, but under- standing the difference helps avoid confusion when seis- mic swarms or news reports draw attention to southern Italy's volcanic arc. Last but not least, it is important to mention again t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p b e t w e e n people and Vesuvius, which has always been circular. Eruptions devastate, then soils regenerate; communi- ties leave, then return; moni- toring improves, then daily life resumes in the shadow of the cone. The volcano's "infi- n i t e s t o r y " l i e s i n t h i s r h y t h m , w h i c h c o m b i n e s geological processes mea- sured on millennial scales with human decisions taken generation by generation. Science, archaeology, and civil planning offer the tools to face the next chapter with more awareness than those who lived through the disas- t e r s o f a n t i q u i t y o r t h e upheavals of the seventeenth century. For now, the moun- tain is quiet, its slopes green with vineyards and dotted with towns, but the silence is temporary: living with Vesu- vius has never meant forget- ting what it is capable of; it has meant preparing for the m o m e n t w h e n i t s p e a k s again. FRANCESCA BEZZONE Postcard beautiful: Naples, its bay and Mount Vesuvius (Photo: FilippoBacci/Istock) Vesuvius and the Bay of Naples: a permanent balance ALL AROUND ITALY TRAVEL TIPS DESTINATIONS ACTIVITIES

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