When water is scary

The nightmare and hibernation of the Acquabomber
by Nicolò Fochi
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The nightmares, those worst ones, strike in the most unsuspecting places. For example, in a place like Ostiglia, a village of 7000 people within the borders of Mantova, a province in northern Italy. The night of November 19, 2009, Luca, a lively 11 year-old boy, was sitting at a table about to eat with his parents in a classic scene of family life. But one knows, the worst nightmares can occur at the most unthinkable moments. Milena, Luca's mother, poured a glass of water for her son. But Luca, just before drinking, wrinkles his nose at the unconvincing glass of water. «Drink, don't be stupid,» his mother chastises him, exasperated at the sight of her son sniffing scrupulously any piece of food or beverage she offers him. Convinced, Luca takes a sip of the water. The taste is awful, and Luca quickly runs to the sink to spit it out. Within the water, it was discovered later, was dissolved ammonia. For Luca, this meant a strong burning sensation in his mouth and three days in the hospital. For Italy, however, it was the beginning of the nightmare of the Acquabomber.

Over the next twenty days, the number of poisoned water incidents rose like wildfire: two were repoted in Mantova and the terror continued in Verona, Torino, Padova, Pistoia, Viterbo, Bari, and Brindisi. By the end of 2003, there were 24 verified cases of bottled water poisoning. All of the cases reported resulted from bottled mineral water bought from the supermarket that had been injected with the same substances with an insulin syringe. The doses of ammonium, ammonia, beach, chlorine, and detergents were used at levels that would induce sickness, but not incur fatality. Clearly, the goal of the Acquabomber was to strike indiscriminately. Not to kill, but to cause panic and chaos. The panic did spread everywhere. People were shaking and reversing bottles before they drank, looking for any suspicious holes. There was an increase in the sales of beverages sold in glass containers since there was no way to inject them. Large numbers of people waited in line at drinking fountains or turned to home faucets as a source of drinkable water. The Acquabomber brought forth imitators trying o compound on the fright. Among these, a nurse Castiglione Stiviere (Mantova) tried to scare her colleagues by bringing in a small bottle of water with a hole in it and reporting it to the police.

Then, after much turmoil, there was silence. This sad story, almost like a fleeting fad, ended and was quickly forgotten. By September 2005, people were no longer scrutinizing and shaking their bottled water before drinking it. Not even Vanni Favaro, a 29 year-old company worker from Padova. On a late summer day to fresh up a bit, Vanni grabbed some water from the company vending machine. The heat caused him to drink the contents of the bottle quickly, but he soon after collapsed to the ground in acute pain. There was no time to wonder whether the Acquabomber was back after two years, as other cases erupted in Pantigliate, Monza, and Desio. Like a film already seen, the panic ensued but gradually diminished with the passing months.

Excluding a handful of sporadic cases that occurred in October 2008 in Tuscany and Sardinia, the Acquabomber has been in hibernation for over 4 years. However, there are still many questions that remain about these incidents. The investigators have not found any concrete results. An undercover group roaming the aisles of supermarkets have been unable to find and sabotagers of mineral water. Among many questions raised but these events, one certainly is if it is worth it to drink bottled water in the face of serial poisoning. Better to drink tap water since you never know.

(translated by Justine Levesque)

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