Italy mourns victims of Genoa bridge collapse with state funeral
14:12, 18/08/2018, SaturdayU: Update: 14:15, 18/08/2018, Saturday
REUTERS
Archbishop of Genoa, Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco, is seen during the state funeral of the victims of the Morandi Bridge collapse, at the Genoa Trade Fair and Exhibition Centre in Genoa Italy August 18, 2018.
Italy's populist ruling coalition on Friday launched a formal procedure aimed at revoking concessions held by Autostrade to operate toll highways.
"Evidently someone did not do their job well in terms of ordinary and extraordinary maintenance. The concessionaire has faults that appear very grave," Toninelli said in an interview with La Stampa, adding that it was up to investigators to establish who was responsible.
The Transport Ministry has given Autostrade 15 days to show it has met all its contractual obligations, failing which Rome could consider it in breach of the terms of its concessions.
Toninelli said he would deploy all necessary resources to avoid further disasters and said he was preparing contingencies in case the concessions were revoked.
Autostrade, which operates 3,000 km of motorways in Italy, said on Saturday it would hold a news conference in Genoa after the funerals, the company's first public appearance since the disaster.
The group's chairman and chief executive officer would outline initiatives to support victims' families and those evacuated from their homes, as well as efforts to help traffic flow in the city, Autostrade added in a statement.