New Holland Construction, the world leader of the Fiat Group in the construction machinery sector, supplied equipment that has recently been used in extreme working conditions, climbing the sides of a volcano to work right under the main mouth of Etna, in Sicily, at a height of 3,300 metres. The units operated between the imposing lava flows that have covered the slopes of the largest active volcano in Europe in recent years and were used to reopen the road that was submerged by lava during the most recent eruption in 2006.

This important project started at the end of June, with New Holland Construction working in collaboration with the Etna Park Authority and Cableway, and has just come to a close.

In an atmosphere which could be described as almost moonlike, the machines -  two crawler excavators, an E485 and an E215B built in the San Mauro factory, and a W190B wheel loader, built in the Lecce plant - worked for approximately one month and were supplied on free-loan, together with an Iveco Trakker truck.

The vehicles were used to repair the infrastructures of the ski slopes which were hit by the last volcanic eruptions in the year 2000, when the black ash was transported as far as Libya by the wind. The E485 was used for the excavation operations, whilst the E215B was perfect for finishing and eliminating the lava debris on the basalt core. The W190B wheel loader was used to level the ski slopes and bring the material required for finishing to a height of 2,500 metres.

“It was an imposing and hard job. The machines had to work on quite inaccessible ground, at a height of 3,300 metres – explains Riccardo Antico, New Holland Construction Manager for the Italian market – but our machines met the challenge. Working for the protection and recovery of such an exceptional environment is a reason to take pride in what we do as well as a job of public utility for the whole community”.

The giant New Holland Construction machines also managed to reopen the road that had been submerged in 2006 by an enormous lava flow. This sole link between the North and South sides of the volcano, a crucial connection in the case of an emergency, was hidden under 500 metres of solid lava. The route allows vehicles to move from one side of the Mount Etna to the other in minutes, essential for those monitoring the volcano’s activity as it is the only escape route in the case of an eruption.  Today, thanks to New Holland Construction machines, this strategic road, so important in emergencies, can once more see the light.