Firefighters battled to put out the embers of two wildfires on the Sicilian island of Pantelleria on Thursday, forcing fashion designer Giorgio Armani and dozens of others to leave their vacation villas.
According to his press office, the flames stopped short of Armani’s villa despite a photo appearing to show them approaching it. In the evening, Armani and his guests boarded a boat in the harbor.
Salvatore Cocina, the director of the region’s civil protection organization, stated that two flames that drove about 30 people to seek safety in boats or on safer areas of the island are suspected of being started intentionally. In addition to ground teams protecting residences, firefighters employed Canadian jets to put out the fires.
No structures, according to authorities, appeared to have been lost.
The last flames were being put out by two Canadairs in challenging terrain, according to the mayor of the island, Vincenzo Campo, who also reported that the wind had diminished.
Pantelleria is getting back to normal after the intense dread of yesterday night and the night spent at work, according to Campo. The worst appears to be over.
Officials in the area made a plea for any information that could be used to determine what caused the fire, which broke out in two locations a quarter mile apart.
Between Sicily and Tunisia, Pantelleria is a well-known beach and hiking resort with historic archaeological monuments and distinctive geographical features.
