Siena readies 118 emergency plan for July Palio crowds

The 118 emergency service of Azienda USL Toscana sud‑est has prepared a comprehensive health‑rescue plan for the July Palio in Siena. Coordinated by director Stefano Dami, the plan involves collaboration with public assistance bodies, the Misericordie, the Italian Red Cross and the CB “Il Palio” association. Five medical stations, about a hundred rescuers, seven doctors, eight nurses, eighteen ambulances and an additional nurse‑ambulance will be on standby to serve the roughly 18,000 spectators in Piazza del Campo and the surrounding stands.

The regional Maxiemergenze coordination will be active from the day of the trials, with regional health referent Piero Paolini and the directors of other Tuscan health centers—Andrea Nicolini and Nicola Bertocci—present in Siena to oversee the plan. Veterinary teams will also conduct health checks on the horses. Dami said, “The passion of all operators, both health professionals and volunteers, is so deep that the Palio plan preparation begins already in the first months of the year, with meetings to discuss critical issues and solutions.”