Andrea Innocenti On September 25, 2026, around 11:30 PM, a massive fire engulfed a three-story building located on Via Bertini, at the corner of Via Corsica, in the San Vito area of Lucca . The emergency was reported by several residents who smelled a strong odor of smoke and the crackling of flames coming from the ground floor.
The fire originated in the apartment where Maria Grazia Giorgetti, 73, and her husband Gianluca Del Papa, 65, lived, an elderly couple well-known in the neighborhood. The fire quickly spread to the upper units, creating a thick cloud of smoke that made it difficult for other residents to access the stairs.
The fire and the victims: two dead in the heart of the house
Once the fire inside the apartment was extinguished, firefighters discovered the lifeless bodies of the two residents. Maria Grazia Giorgetti was found charred in the living room, while Gianluca Del Papa lay in the bedroom, dead from combustion gas inhalation.
Initial hypotheses point to a possible cigarette left lit next to an oxygen tank, but the investigation is still ongoing and the prosecutor's office has requested a technical report from the fire department.
Effects on the entire building and the evacuation of residents
Smoke quickly spread to the upper floors, creating a gas barrier in the stairwells that trapped residents, forcing them to seek escape on the balconies. A total of 13 people were poisoned or injured, including four children and a newborn, the latter of whom was rescued by emergency responders. Eight people (five adults and three children) were admitted with yellow status, a woman in her sixties was transferred with red status to Pisa hospital, while three other patients were admitted with green status . A total of 16 residents were evacuated and found shelter in a facility managed by the municipality.
Institutional response and assistance to families
Mayor Mario Pardini visited the site of the accident, expressing his condolences and thanking the firefighters, law enforcement, and the various ambulances that responded, including the Lucca medical car and the teams from Croce Verde, Misericordia, and ANPAS. He emphasized that "the toll is tragic: two people have lost their lives" and assured that the Municipality's Social Services are already working to provide support to the displaced families. A room at the Villa Pardini Post Office (Sant'Anna) has been prepared to accommodate families, with capacity for 16-18 people. The entire building has been declared unfit for use due to residual smoke, while authorities continue their investigations to determine the cause of the fire.