Malta, 31-year-old Sicilian woman falls off a cliff with her quad and dies. The dynamics of the accident
She was hiking on a cliff in Malta and fell into the sea with her quad. This is how Oriana Bertolino, a 31-year-old volleyball player from Marsala in Sicily, died. The girl was on the island with a 47-year-old friend, her fellow citizen, with whom she was taking a trip to the cliffs of Wied il-Miela (Salt Valley in Maltese). The driver of the quad lost control of the vehicle but managed to save himself, suffering only minor injuries.
On June 30, Oriana was hiking in the Valle del Sale, a fjord with walls as high as ten-story buildings, overlooking the Strait of Sicily, at the northernmost point of the island of Gozo, from where it is normal to see Mount Etna on clear days. In a desert landscape of rare beauty, on terraces suspended between the blue of the Mediterranean and the sky, reachable only on foot and where salt has been collected for millennia, you can admire the sunset with a panorama dominated by the spectacular rock arch that became popular after the collapse of the iconic Azure Window on the night between March 7 and 8, 2017, knocked down by the nature that had created it. It was a jump of over 25 meters directly into the sea that led the woman to “an atrocious death”, as the Maltese police defined it. Oriana worked in a veterinary clinic and aspired to a career as a volleyball coach. In approximately the same spot, a ledge a couple of meters high suspended in the void, a Swiss tourist who had tried to ride a mountain bike died in 2018.
Maltese police reported that the driver of the quad (apparently the 47 year old friend) lost control of the vehicle, apparently due to a steering problem that prevented him from changing direction. The man managed to save himself with only minor injuries. According to initial reports, the guide of the group of hikers, fearing to arrive late and miss the sunset, would have pushed everyone to accelerate. The dust raised and the poor grip, being on a dirt road, would have prevented the quad driver from stopping in time before the end of the cliff, which overlooks the sea. Bertolino’s body was recovered, the young woman would have died from the injuries sustained. The man, however, was treated for minor injuries at the hospital in Gozo. Magistrate Brigitte Sultana is conducting an investigation.
The Italian Embassy in Malta, informed by the Maltese police, maintained constant contact with the victim’s family, until the official identification communicated by the Maltese police late on Sunday afternoon. The Times of Malta opens its online edition by defining the Sicilian volleyball player as “a gentle soul” and among the comments of condolence and dismay, the main one points out that Oriana was preparing for a “brilliant career” on the bench.
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