Naples garbage to be gone by Christmas

Italy’s southern city of Naples will be rid of its piles of garbage by Christmas with the arrival of dump trucks from other regions helping in an intensified clean-up, the mayor’s office vowed yesterday.

Uncollected waste has accumulated in the city for weeks, with residents reporting a rise in the numbers of rats, pigeons and seagulls and experts warning of health risks from the rotting rubbish.

A dozen vehicles from Rome were already in the city helping its own dump trucks, said Paolo Giacomelli, the city official in charge of hygiene.

Around 1,600 tonnes of garbage were collected on Saturday and, taking into account new waste produced daily, the amount to still be removed had dropped to 2,680 tonnes from 2,910 tonnes a day earlier, Mr Giacomelli said.