San Donato railway tunnel hosts emergency response drill

Civil protection authorities conducted a nighttime emergency drill in the San Donato railway tunnel on the Florence-Arezzo Direttissima line. The exercise, organized by Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (RFI) and coordinated by the Prefecture of Florence, simulated a fire starting on a regional train's carriage.

The scenario involved the emergency braking of a train inside the tunnel, the simulated medical assistance of two passengers suffering from smoke inhalation, and the assisted evacuation of travelers. Firefighters utilized a specialized bimodal vehicle to reach the train, while Busitalia provided transport to move passengers to the Florence Campo di Marte station once they were outside the tunnel.

The drill aimed to test the effectiveness of the emergency and rescue plan approved in January, specifically focusing on communication flows between operational components, emergency activation procedures, and infrastructure access. The exercise was completed without impacting regular railway traffic.