1976: quando l’Esercito salvò il Friuli

On the night between May 6 and 7, 1976, Friuli was struck by one of the most devastating earthquakes in modern Italian history. Entire villages collapsed, communications were cut off, and thousands of people were left stranded amid the rubble. In this video, we reconstruct the role played by the Italian Army during the emergency following the 1976 Friuli earthquake, with particular attention to the intervention of the Italian Army Corps of Engineers. Through period images, documents, and firsthand testimony, the video shows how the army managed to rapidly mobilize men and equipment at a time when Friuli also represented one of the most strategically important areas of the Cold War. The video features a general from the Army Corps of Engineers who participated directly in the rescue operations. The interview reconstructs: the situation in the first hours after the earthquake the mobilization of the Engineer Corps the role of the Spaccamela barracks in Udine the action of the V Army Corps and the IV Alpine Army Corps the reopening of roads, bridges, and railway lines the securing of buildings and works of art the use of new special rescue vehicles the controlled demolition of the Gemona hospital forepart the operations carried out in Cavazzo Carnico Particular attention is paid to the major technical operation that led to the demolition of the Gemona hospital using explosives, one of the most complex operations carried out by the engineers during the emergency. The video concludes by showing how the experience gained in Friuli contributed to the birth of the modern Italian civil defense model. 📚 Video Contents The Night of the Earthquake The Italian Army's Intervention The Military Engineers in Friuli Departments, Equipment, and Rescue Operations The Demolition of the Gemona Hospital Firsthand Accounts of the Protagonists The Birth of the Italian Civil Protection Model 🔖 Hashtag #TerremotoFriuli #Friuli1976 #EsercitoItaliano #GenioMilitare #ProtezioneCivil #StoriaItaliana #Terremoto #Friuli #DocumentarioHistorico #GuerraCredda #Gemona #Udine #StoriaMilitare #Italia1976