Northern Italy is going through one of the worst natural calamities it has ever witnessed. Heavy rains caused 14 rivers to overflow and flood the town of Emilia Romagna. The resultant tragedy caused the death of 9 people and left scores stranded. Authorities are still in the process of evacuating civilians as the situation continues to worsen. Taking note of the ground reality, F1 bosses decided to call off the Grand Prix that was set to take place this weekend. Expressing their solidarity with the victims and affected families, almost every F1 driver, including Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, put out heartfelt messages. Now, F1 boss, Stefano Domenicali, has come out lauding the efforts of the rescuers working tirelessly in his hometown.

Before the Azerbaijan GP, F1 took a week’s break owing to the cancellation of the Chinese GP. Many teams made use of the hiatus to bring in the first set of changes to their cars. Mercedes, however, planned its amendments for the race in Imola, which now stands canceled. Nevertheless, they hailed F1’s decision to cancel the event by putting out a video on Twitter with George and Lewis, expressing their solidarity with the people of Emilia Romagna.

Stefano Domenicali laments the tragedy that has befallen his birthplace

Domenicali holds Imola very dear to his heart because it happens to be his birthplace. It is also the place that gave him his first experience of motor racing which went on to become his passion. To learn that his beloved town is going through this horrible tragedy must be a saddening experience for him.

Speedcafe quoted him as saying, “My thoughts and prayers are with the victims of the flooding and the families and communities affected.”

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“I want to express my gratitude and admiration for the incredible emergency services who are working tirelessly to help those who need help and alleviate the situation. They are heroes and the whole of Italy is proud of them.”

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Domenicali also spoke about the cancellation of the Grand Prix. FIA boss echoed the sentiment that his F1 counterpart iterated in his statement.

FIA boss stands with Domenicali’s decision to cancel the Emilia Romagna GP

News of bad weather had started to come in days before F1 took the decision to call off the Grand Prix. However, nobody expected the situation to get so bad that it would the shape of a natural disaster. Soon, calls for the cancellation of the event were raised once the pictures of the flooded paddocks started doing the rounds of the internet.

Speaking on the decision to call off the race, the former Ferrari boss said, “The decision that has been taken is the right one for everyone in the local communities and the F1 family as we need to ensure safety and not create extra burden for the authorities while they deal with this very awful situation.”

FIA boss Mohammed Ben Sulayem echoed a similar sentiment in his statement. He said, “My thoughts, and those of the entire FIA family, are with those affected by the terrible situation in the Emilia Romagna region.”

“The safety of everyone involved and recovery efforts are the top priority at this time.”

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The F1 community is standing tall with the people of Emilia Romagna. Ferrari recently announced a donation of $1 million for the rescue operations in the region. Let us hope the situation comes under control soon and more help arrives as soon as possible.