Italian visitors to the Vajont Dam hike up the rock-strewn pathway after checking out the dam up close. People still regularly come to the site decades after a disaster that killed more than 1,900 residents of nearby villages. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
The mountains surrounding the Italian village of Longarone are awe-inspiring, and the nearby Vajont Dam’s claim to being one of the world’s tallest draws some attention, even though it’s not in use anymore.
But neither of those features explains why a small but steady stream of visitors has been showing up for decades at a site little-known outside Italy.
On the night of Oct. 9, 1963, an avalanche poured tons of rock into the reservoir behind the dam, causing a wave that swept into and over the structure and down into the valley below.
A memorial sign above the Vajont Dam in Italy commemorates the 1,910 people who died Oct. 9, 1963, when a wave of water swept over the dam and destroyed several villages beneath it. The sign says 487 of the victims were children age 15 and under. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
Several villages were wiped out and more than 1,900 people were killed. Almost 500 of them were children. The villages, which largely have been rebuilt, weren’t all that populous, or the death toll would have been higher.
A new village named Vajont was constructed on the plains beneath the mountains near the city of Maniago in the early 1970s, and some former residents of the area moved there.
Almost 500 pieces of cloth line a fence overlooking the Vajont Dam near Longarone, Italy. Each one lists the name of a child 15 or younger killed Oct. 9, 1963, when a landslide crashed into the reservoir at the dam, causing a wave of water that wiped out several villages. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
It is a short drive from Aviano Air Base and once housed an elementary school for American students from the base. Paratroopers from Vicenza jump onto Juliet Drop Zone nearby.
Most Italians now believe that the tragedy was preventable. Experts had conducted studies in the 1950s before and while the dam was being built, warning that the area was prone to landslides.
But construction went forward, the dam was completed and a reservoir formed behind the dam. Today, there’s very little evidence of that reservoir.
Visitors can head to the rebuilt village of Longarone, a short drive north from the end of the A27 autostrada, and see both the dam and the memorials to those who died.
The Vajont Dam in northeastern Italy is dwarfed by the mountains surrounding it. Part of the nearby village of Longarone, which was rebuilt after a devastating wave flowed over the dam on the night of Oct. 9, 1963, can be seen in the background. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
The walk along a rock-strewn path to what appears to be the base of the dam doesn’t take long. It’s actually not the base, though, but rather the lowest point of where the reservoir was. The dam extends below on the other side, which is far less accessible.
It's possible to stand on the structure by taking a guided tour. Otherwise, several viewpoints are available. Signs in Italian and English recount the history of the site, and there’s a chapel near the top of the dam, although it is often closed.
It's possible to walk down to the bottom of the Vajont Dam via a rocky path. Looking up, one can see the massive amount of concrete used to construct the structure, which has not been in use since the water was drained following the 1963 disaster that killed more than 1,900 people. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
Just a few miles away, a marked trailhead points out paths onto some of the surrounding mountains.
Vajont Dam can also be visited as part of a trip to the nearby lakes of Barcis and San Croce. Add in the cities of Vittorio Veneto and Belluno along the A27 and there’s more than enough to fill up a weekend.
A statue honoring the 1,910 Italian villagers killed in the 1963 Vajont Dam disaster. The dam has not been in use since then. (Lynette Harris)
On the QT
Location: SR251 just east of Longarone, Italy.
Hours: None, but guided tours must be booked in advance
Cost: Parking in the small lot near the top of the dam costs 2 euros an hour. There are a few larger lots designed for buses and spillover traffic a short walk away. It costs 5.40 euros in highway tolls from Aviano.
Information: Online: tinyurl.com/mt77ze48; for guided tours, Phone: +39 0427-87333
