For three decades, Mauro Morandi has been the sole inhabitant of a picturesque island off the coast of Sardinia in the Mediterranean Sea.
He hoped to never leave, but he may soon be evicted from the sun-drenched Isle of Budelli.
Local authorities are planning to turn his Spartan hut into an environmental observatory.
Morandi, 81, a former teacher, arrived on the island by accident while attempting to sail from Italy to Polynesia 31 years ago. He fell in love with the turquoise waters and coral sands, and he decided to stay, CNN reports.
For more than 30 years, Mauro Morandi has been the sole inhabitant of Budelli, an Italian island in the Mediterranean Sea.
As the global coronavirus crisis unfolds, he now faces eviction from "the safest place on Earth." https://t.co/JUT2ekCaZG
— CNN (@CNN) July 28, 2020
“I’m ready to do all I can to stay here, even if that means they’ll have to drag me away. I wouldn’t know where else to go live, certainly not back home in the north, nor what to do — this is my life. I just don’t see myself playing cards or bowls,” he said.
An online petition was launched urging officials to reverse their looming eviction decision, and in just a few days, it has gathered more than 6,600 signatures.
