Tragedy Strikes Ischia: The Heartbreaking Story of Antonella Di Massa and Her Family

Antonella Di Massa, 51 years old, lived on Via Monte della Misericordia in Casamicciola with her husband Domenico Raco, 55 years old, an Army employee, and their daughters Alessia, 24 years old, a Psychology student in Naples, and Flavia, 19 years old. The address is significant in this story that has shocked Ischia. The Raco family's home was also hit by the mudslide that devastated the town on the north coast of the island on November 26, 2022. In other words, the Racos too had to fight for weeks to clear their home of earth, stones, and branches, a very tough period for them and for the hundreds of islanders involved: the landslide killed 12 people and injured 5. The destroyed or damaged homes were (are) 40, and the displaced were 462. Since February 17, the Racos have plunged again into anguish: the husband and daughters cannot explain and do not understand why Alessandra has disappeared. In these hours, it was up to the man to recognize his wife's body. In the past few days, he and his daughters had also participated in the search with the organizers, including law enforcement and volunteers, who now cannot explain how it was possible not to see the body just a few steps from the edge of Via Succhivo, 300 meters from the woman's car, in the southern part of the island. The landowners say that the body was not there in the past few days. In the past few days, the husband had spread, thanks to friends, messages inviting his wife to give news, to at least let know if she was alright while she continued to be missing from home. The matter of a note found at home by family members a few days after the departure is still uncertain. Neighbors describe Antonella, who besides raising her daughters with her husband, helped her parents manage apartments for tourists, as a very private and kind person, elegant in manners and in dress, very attentive to her daughters' lives. She was also known for attending the parish of Santa Maria Maddalena where she had volunteered as a choir member.