Popoli

Popoli
Country	Italy
region	Abruzzo
province	Pescara (PE)
Coordinates	42 ° 10 ′ N , 13 ° 50 ′ E Coordinates: 42 ° 10 ′ 0 ″ N , 13 ° 50 ′ 0 ″ E
height	254 m slm
surface	34 km²
Residents	4,880 (Dec. 31, 2019)
Population density	144 inhabitants / km²
Post Code	65026
prefix	085
ISTAT number	068033
Popular name	Pop readers
Patron saint	San Bonifacio
Website	Popoli
	; View of the headwaters of the Pescara River and Popoli in the background

View of Popoli

Popoli is an Italian commune in the province of Pescara in the Abruzzo region and has 4880 inhabitants. The village is located in the Majella National Park .

The neighboring communities are Bussi sul Tirino , Collepietro ( AQ ), Corfinio (AQ), San Benedetto in Perillis (AQ), Tocco da Casauria and Vittorito (AQ).

Popoli is on the A25 motorway from Pescara to Rome and on state road 17.

There are three large springs around Popoli, the largest is the Sorgenti del Pescara with over 7000 liters per second, followed by the Sorgente Giardino, which supplies the cities of Pescara and Chieti with drinking water with around 2000 l / s. The smallest source, the Sorgente Callisto with approx. 1000 l / s, not only supplies Popoli with water, but also with electricity, since a turbine is connected upstream. Another very small spring is recognized as a healing spring and connected to a medicinal bath.

history

Destruction in World War II

Popoli was bombed twice by the allied air force led by the English. On January 20, 1944, an attempt was made to destroy the "Julius Caesar" bridge, it was the most important bridge in the region between Rome and Pescara. In this attack, the hospital near the bridge was also destroyed, but the bridge itself was not , It was only blown up by the retreating Wehrmacht itself. At noon on March 22, 1944, the town hall and the city center were destroyed by massive British bombing raids. At that time, the salaries or coupons (especially for milk) of the Italian soldiers and employees were handed out in the town hall to the women who stood in long lines with their small children in front of the town hall. So most of the dead and injured were women with their children; Whether it was coincidence or intent has not yet been clarified for the residents. Over 200 people lost their lives directly; Since the hospital was destroyed, the injured were brought 20 km to Sulmona by donkey cart or military transporter . Many of the injured did not survive the journey. The day burned itself into the memory of the residents because many families from Popoli and the surrounding villages lost their loved ones on this day. The graves from this period can be recognized in the Sulmona cemetery as a field of iron crosses.

2009 earthquake

A destroyed house in Popoli

Locked houses in Popoli

The city did not have any deaths from the earthquake, apart from one student who died in the collapsed dormitory in L'Aquila, but more than 160 houses have been destroyed or remain uninhabitable for a long time. The six churches in the old town are closed because there is an acute danger of collapse and therefore masses can only take place outdoors. The tidying up and security work has been completed, the restoration and repair of the churches and houses have begun as soon as the means and labor are available; According to various statements, the majority of the damage should be repaired by the end of 2020 and a small part (depending on the destruction) by 2035. The local elementary school is being rebuilt with donations from Wolfsburg, for example, and the old school is to be rebuilt as the new town hall. In the meantime, a container village will house the school, and at the end of 2010 the new building will be available to the students again. Since the earthquake center was about 40 km away and the old town of Popolis is on a rock layer, the damage to most of the houses did not occur immediately, so the residents had enough time to leave their homes and only the aftershocks increased in various strengths the damage to the point of being uninhabitable or collapsing. Since many houses and apartments in Popoli are used as holiday homes, there is hardly any housing shortage, on the contrary: residents from other places have been evacuated here. However, if necessary, prefabricated wooden houses (as in other places) will be made available as an interim solution until autumn. As in L'Aquila, many houses in Popoli are still not habitable a year after the quake, as the government has been waiting for reconstruction funds.

The twin city Wolfsburg supported Popoli with 100,000 euros to rebuild a middle school.

Attractions

Taverna Ducale

The city itself and the surrounding area have several attractions, including:

The Taverna Ducale from the middle of the 14th century is one of the most beautiful secular buildings in Abruzzo
Torre de'Passeri
The Church of San Francesco was built in the 15th century
SS Trimitá Church from 1562 with an altar and wooden choir from 1745
The area around the sources of the Pescara River is a regional reserve
The ruins of the Castello Ducale Cantelmo above Popoli from the 11th century
The 12th century Abbey of San Clemente a Casauria