Frosinone police commissioner
Filippo Santarelli has revealed that he found the body of his
son Marco in Amatrice after rushing to the Lazio town from Rome
following a deadly 6.2-magnitude earthquake on August 24.
Santarelli told Milan daily Corriere della Sera in an
interview published on Friday that he was in Rome when the quake
struck but decided to immediately drive to Amatrice because his
young son, who was holidaying at the family home there with two
friends, wasn't answering his cell phone.
The commissioner said he was helped by police officers and
volunteers to remove rubble and stones at the family home and
was hopeful his son had survived as both his friends and his cat
were unhurt.
At around midday on Thursday he said that someone saw his
body.
"I was right there but they took me away - they didn't know
what condition the body would be in", he said.
Santarelli said he had spoken to his son the previous night
and he sounded happy.
"His dream was to become a chef", he said.
"He was happy because he had started working at a restaurant
near Frosinone".
Marco Santarelli was buried Friday in Rome.
Frosinone is a city between Rome and Naples.
It is one of Lazio's four provincial capitals alongside
Rome.
The others are Latina, Viterbo and Rieti, whose province
suffered the worst from the quake that has killed at least 267
people.
photo: Marco Santarelli's funeral
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