The quiet beauty of Fiordo di Furore was shattered Monday by frantic calls for help, echoing through one of the Amalfi Coast’s most iconic natural settings.
A 46-year-old American woman had leapt into the sea from a towering height, suffering a severe spinal injury. The dive—risky, unplanned, and likely impulsive—ended in disaster in a place known as much for its charm as for its hidden dangers.
Emergency responders arrived within minutes. A water ambulance from nearby Positano reached the woman, stabilized her at the scene, and transported her to Amalfi’s Molo Darsena. From there, she was rushed to the emergency department at Castiglione di Ravello Hospital. Medical tests revealed a significant vertebral trauma, prompting an immediate airlift to San Giovanni di Dio e Ruggi d’Aragona Hospital in Salerno. She is now in the Neurosurgery ward in stable condition, though doctors remain concerned about possible spinal complications.
Health officials said her life is not in danger, but “there are concerns about possible damage that could compromise her mobility.” The woman, a mother of three, remained conscious throughout the entire rescue operation.
Fiordo di Furore is internationally famous for its dramatic cliff-diving competitions, where trained athletes plunge more than 98 feet into the Tyrrhenian Sea. The narrow inlet, wedged between steep rock walls and turquoise waters, draws thousands of tourists each year. But the same spectacular backdrop has become a magnet for risky behavior.
In recent years, growing numbers of visitors have climbed over roadside barriers along State Road 163 to imitate professional divers—without proper supervision, experience, or safety equipment. Some do it for thrills, others for social media. Local officials have repeatedly raised red flags about the trend.
“This is not a playground,” one local lawmaker warned last summer. “We’ve seen too many people put their lives at risk trying to copy what they see in videos, without understanding the consequences.”
Monday’s accident has reignited those concerns.
