Initial press release description
All weekend, helicopters and crews from the 15th Wing of Cervia are in action at the request of the regional Civil Protection and the Prefecture of Ravenna.
Crews from the 15th Wing of the Italian Air Force, based at Cervia, a unit specialising in search and rescue operations, have been engaged since last Friday in rescue efforts for the populations of Emilia Romagna affected by the severe bad weather of recent days.
On the afternoon ofFriday 5 May, at the request of the Regional Civil Protection, the Aerospace Operations Command of Poggio Renatico (Ferrara) ordered the intervention of an HH-139B helicopter from the 83rd SAR Centre (Search and Rescue) of Cervia to transport rescue teams to Modigliana, a municipality in the province of Forlì Cesena which has been among the hardest hit by the severe bad weather that has plagued the Emilia Romagna region in recent hours.
Late on the evening of the same day, the same helicopter took off again to rescue two citizens from the same municipality who were trapped in their home in an area inaccessible by land. The operation concluded successfully around 11 PM and required the crew to use special night-vision goggles.
On Saturday, May 6th, at the request of the Prefecture of Ravenna, air intervention was required to deliver supplies to a livestock farm that had become isolated in a remote and rugged mountainous area in Casola Valsenio, in the province of Ravenna. An HH-139B helicopter, also from Cervia base, was therefore deployed to carry out this specific rescue mission. Operations concluded on Sunday.
This type of intervention falls under those that the Ministry of Defence, through specialised units of the Armed Forces identified on a case-by-case basis according to the need, makes available to the community in the event of an emergency or disaster.
The 15th Wing of the Italian Air Force guarantees, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, without interruption, the search and rescue of flight crews in difficulty, also contributing to public utility activities such as the search for missing persons at sea or in mountains, emergency medical transport of patients in imminent danger of death, and the rescue of severely traumatised individuals, operating even in extreme weather conditions.
From its establishment to the present day, the crews of the 15th Wing have saved more than 7,500 people from life-threatening situations. Since 2018, the Unit has acquired Wildfire Fighting (AIB) capability, contributing to the prevention and combat of fires throughout the national territory as part of the joint interforce system deployed by the Defence.
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