1) TRAVEL AGENCY CLOSED FOR A YEAR, OWNER COMMITS SUICIDE
2) PLANE CRASHED 40 YEARS AGO FOUND IN THE WOODS
3) CYCLIST HAS A STROKE, A TAXI DRIVER SAVES HIM
4) CHANGES THE METER, GETS A 3000 € BILL
5) BUYS AN APARTMENT WITH UNPAID TAXES, ARRESTED

BACKGROUND MUSIC
Title: Reaction
Author:Wayne John Bradley
License: Creative Commons Attribution
Links: https://soundcloud.com/ayneohnradley/reaction-original-instrumental-royalty-free

LINKS TO ARTICLES
https://www.lanazione.it/prato/cronaca/si-toglie-la-vita-nella-sua-agenzia-viaggi-da-un-anno-l-attivit%C3%A0-era-ferma-per-il-covid-1.6068213
https://iltirreno.gelocal.it/livorno/cronaca/2021/02/25/news/due-passi-nel-bosco-con-giallo-trovati-i-resti-di-un-aereo-1.39952807
https://iltirreno.gelocal.it/livorno/cronaca/2021/02/25/news/rintracciato-il-pilota-del-piper-che-precipito-alla-valle-benedetta-38-anni-fa-mi-salvai-per-miracolo-1.39953980
https://iltirreno.gelocal.it/regione/toscana/2021/02/26/news/dopo-il-piper-ecco-il-pilota-38-anni-fa-fui-miracolato-1.39956388
https://iltirreno.gelocal.it/pisa/cronaca/2021/02/24/news/e-in-fin-di-vita-dopo-un-infarto-era-stato-rianimato-da-un-passante-1.39952502
https://iltirreno.gelocal.it/massa/cronaca/2021/02/25/news/cambiano-il-contatore-elettrico-e-gli-arriva-una-bolletta-da-3mila-euro-1.39953760
http://www.sienafree.it/siena/142-siena/122922-siena-acquista-appartamento-da-300mila-euro-con-i-soldi-delle-imposte-evase-denunciato-e-appartamento-sequestrato

SCRIPT
Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, wherever you may be, however you might be listening, welcome to another episode of What’s Up Tuscany, the daily podcast from L’Arno where you’ll find the most interesting news of today, Friday February 26th 2021, as selected by our journalists. As usual, we invite you to subscribe and share this podcast on social media, we would be really thankful for that.

Let’s start with a story that we read this morning on La Nazione that almost made us spit our breakfast. Since day one we talked about the mental health crisis that is gripping our region and how many small entrepreneurs are about to give up. One of them, the owner of a travel agency in the small town of Carmignano, near Prato, decided to take his own life in his shop, which has been empty for months. The news spread like wildfire in the 5000 inhabitants town. Stefano was 68 and for the past 25 years had been following his passion. In the end, the crisis was too much for him to bear. To find the body and the farewell letter his partner, late last evening. Local businesses, as the owner of the nearby bar, understand his motivations. Quote “he’s a victim of this pandemic as well. Small businesses have been left to their own devices. We hardly do any business but we still have to pay the rent”. A sad news that is not isolated: we remember a similar case last August, when a small business owner in Florence committed suicide when unable to pay the mortgage on his restaurant.

Let’s move now to a much less serious article we read on Il Tirreno. Near Livorno a small plane wreckage was found in the woods after almost 40 years. The plane was in the Valle Benedetta woods and was found by a photographer, Elena Bucelli. The photos published on social media prompted many to seek information on this accident. The Piper Cherokee Six 300 had crashed in the woods in the 80s when the pilot, confused by the fog, hit the treetops before crashing on the ground. Many were surprised by the fact that no one had removed the wreckage, in a difficult to reach forested area. This morning, again on Il Tirreno, we read the interview with the pilot that came out unscathed from the accident. Ennio Staffini, entrepreneur that is now living in the States, remembers the crash that happened on November 21st 1983 and how lucky he felt. Back then he worked for a small company in Piedmont as a pilot, working mostly with skydivers. After the six-seater crashed, insurance paid the company but no one removed the wreckage. We hope that the media attention will convince someone to act, before people hurt themselves just to get a selfie with the “forgotten plane”.

Let’s move now to Tirrenia, where yesterday morning a tragedy was avoided thanks to the help of a passerby. As we read on Il Tirreno, Cristiano Balestri, a 50 year old from Marina di Pisa, had a stroke while he was cycling. He collapsed to the ground around 11 AM and remained there for minutes, ignored by the cars, before a group of cyclists stopped. Simone Martini, a taxi driver from Pisa, recognized his friend and started practicing CPR. He kept going until, more than 30 minutes later, the ambulance finally arrived. Adrenaline and the defibrillator did their job but Cristiano is still in critical conditions in the Cisanello hospital. One thing is sure: without the help of the taxi driver, he would have died there, on the pavement, ignored by everyone.

Let’s move now to an interesting story we read on the Massa edition of Il Tirreno. After his meter was replaced, a resident received a massive electricity bill, over three thousand euros. The result of a check of his energy consumption from 2018 to 2020 left him stunned. His electricity bills always were normal. So he decided to seek the help of Confconsumatori, a consumer advocacy group. The association lawyer, Francesca Galloni, didn’t give up and protested against the provider estimate, which she considered outlandish. The provider realized their mistake and came up with an exact quote. According to the lawyer, it’s not an isolated case. Quote “many people seek our help after receiving massive electricity or heating bills. Sometimes they’re caused by faulty meters. In most cases we are successful and the massive bills are corrected” end quote. An advice to consumers? File your claim before the expiry date and don’t give up after the first negative response. A very useful advice, especially now, when an unexpected expense could cause massive problems for many families.

Let’s close today’s episode with a funny story we read on Siena Free, that of a nonchalant entrepreneur that forgot to file his tax returns for years and reinvested the money in a luxury flat for his daughter. The Guardia di Finanza started checking the man, who is a wholesaler of shoemaking products, when he didn’t file tax returns from 2014 to 2017. No income tax, no VAT, nothing at all, for a turnaround estimated in 1.2 million Euros. How did he do it? He moved the money to his daughter’s accounts, some in cash, other in checks from his clients. As the money accumulated there, he thought it best to invest in a 300000 Euros flat for his daughter, an university student. Now he’s been charged with tax fraud and the property has been seized by the authorities. Now, I understand that optimism is crucial for an entrepreneur but how did he think he could get away with it?! Unbelievable...

That was all for today, I’m your host Luca Bocci and I’ll see you tomorrow with our weekend episode, the “rest of the week” of What’s Up Tuscany, the daily podcast from L’Arno where you will find the news that, according to us, are well worth a second look. Thanks for listening and goodbye.