The Grand Finale Venice 24/7

Venice. One of the most stunning cities on earth.

Over 50,000 tourists arrive here each day for the carnival,

culture and canals.

But what they don't see is how this city works.

This is Venice from the inside.

Around the clock,

emergency teams fight to keep a city built on water safe and working.

ALARM BELL RINGS

With unprecedented access to police, fire and medical teams, we come

face-to-face with the unique daily challenges and life-and-death drama.

Up to yesterday evening, she was all right

and this morning, she was found non-responsive.

This is Venice 24/7, where the ordinary becomes extraordinary.

It's the middle of summer,

and temperatures are soaring into the 30s.

As the city swelters, Venetians and visitors prepare

to pack the canals and cool off for the city's own celebration -

il Redentore.

Meaning "the Redeemer",

this religious festival dates back 500 years.

Today, though, it's less about piety and more about the party.

There are lavish fireworks, food and plenty of drink.

Canals are so packed with boats, they say you can walk across them

from one side to the other.

The festival today may be about big bangs and marine revellers,

but for some, like Father Andrea, a Capuchin friar,

the Redentore's religious origins haven't been forgotten.

TRANSLATION FROM ITALIAN:

Palladio's Santissimo Redentore Church was built in divine gratitude

and marries the religions of East and West.

Venice saw itself as a gateway to the East, linked by trade.

It was trade which brought the city to power

and then, with some unwelcome cargo, to its knees.

The religious significance of the church symbolises the resurrection of the city

and it's still a place of pilgrimage today.

For two days, the church will be linked to the rest of Venice

by a specially built temporary bridge,

allowing thousands of worshippers to come.

It's from here that the celebration will kick off in 24 hours' time.

With less than a day until the party starts,

the city is packed, and the temperature has soared.

At the city's hospital, they get a call-out.

A yellow code is the second most serious.

For Dr Michele Alzetta, head of the Venetian ambulance service,

summer in the city is especially challenging.

SIREN SOUNDS

Apparently, a person lost consciousness in a shop.

They called the 118 service.

With the heat, of course,

you have people suffering from heat stroke and things like that.

Because in Venice people tend to walk a lot and it's hot,

they sweat, maybe they don't drink enough.

On their way to the patient, the crew are slowed down.

Recent storms mean the canals are swollen, and access is difficult.

GRINDING NOISE

GRINDING NOISE

We just managed to scrape underneath that bridge,

but the tide is rising,

so I don't know if we'll manage to make it back through the same place.

It depends how long we'll be staying on the spot with the patient.

The collapsed patient has regained consciousness

but is suffering from high blood pressure.

Hello.

What do you take for high blood pressure?

We'll take a vein, just to keep you under control.

Did you lose consciousness completely or not?

Although the man takes pills for high blood pressure,

it seems he's been taking another kind of medication.

-Are you allergic to anything?

-No.

-Breathe with your mouth open.

They fear the man might have suffered a heart attack,

so Dr Alzetta decides to take him to the hospital.

No, no, don't stand up. We'll put you seated.

As the main canal routes are packed,

the ambulance struggled to find a place to moor.

Unfortunately, it means a longer route back to their boat.

We had an episode of atypical chest pain, but, although he's young,

he has several risk factors, so he'll be kept under observation

in our intensive observation unit in the emergency room.

The team will hand the patient over to the cardiac specialists

and prepare for their next job.

There are over 400 bridges in the city connecting Venice's districts.

The four most vital are those crossing the Grand Canal,

including the famous Rialto.

For pedestrians,

the bridges are the quickest way to navigate the city.

But for those unable to climb the sometimes steep steps,

a short distance can turn into a long wait.

ALARM BELL RINGS

The team are preparing to rescue an elderly woman

trapped in a lift on a bridge in Giudecca.

The lady has no water with her, and it's 32 degrees.

They need to get to her quickly

before the heat inside the lift becomes unbearable.

The firemen carry keys to all of Venice's public lifts,

but with a numbering system as erratic as the postcodes,

it could take a while to find the right one.

Grazie.

Grazie.

In a city crisscrossed by 176 canals,

bridges can be, as well as a help, a daily hazard.

Bridges are essential in keeping Venice moving

and have existed here for centuries.

Without them, the city's six districts would be cut off

from one another, so maintaining these walkways is critical.

Engineer Adriano Ercole works with the company

responsible for maintaining the infrastructure of this ancient city.

As they conceal essential pipework for the city,

these bridges need to be kept in good working order.

With 55 miles of canal banks and 347 public bridges to maintain,

the team must work all year round.

At Venice's dockyard on the island of Tronchetto, to the west of the historic centre,

the highlight of the Redentore is being prepared.

Antonio Parente is responsible for the Festival fireworks,

a spectacular display lighting up Venice from over 60 miles away.

We are ready to prepare the firework show for Saturday night.

It's the Redentore party.

It's one of the oldest events in Venice for fireworks

and for party, for the people that live in Venice.

We have around...5,000 fireworks.

The fireworks are prepared here before being transported to the launch site in St Mark's Basin.

The operation is so dangerous that the team will have their own police escort.

The most delicate in that time is the loading,

because we are managing fireworks.

The other section a little bit dangerous

is the plugging in of the connection of all the line,

because we are working with special igniters that are very delicate.

The fireworks are loaded into the launch tubes, where they're then charged.

Antonio works with a highly trained team.

The fireworks are covered with aluminium to protect them

from the heat and prevent early ignition.

But in this weather, electric storms are common, posing a real hazard.

It's always dangerous, but we need to stay away

and...to pray that no lightning falls exactly on the barge.

This massive display, lasting 40 minutes and costing £100,000,

will light up the party in less than 24 hours.

Venice wakes up to the day of the Redentore.

While the city prepares,

the emergency services ready themselves for another day's work.

Their first callout of the day is from an elderly resident, apparently trapped in her home.

Massimo Pierfederici, a fireman with over 20 years' experience,

is in charge of today's shift.

SIREN SOUNDS

They're heading to the neighbouring district of Cannaregio.

HORN SOUNDS

The local police are already at the scene. They can hear the lady inside

but can't get into the apartment.

The flat faces the rear courtyard of a restaurant, but before they decide to force entry,

the team needs to know how she's locked herself in.

The elderly woman is confused,

so the team decide to enter through the bathroom.

But the window is too small, so a more drastic solution is needed.

The team try to force the door open,

but the elderly lady becomes agitated.

She thinks it's burglars, so Massimo tries to reassure her.

After the shock, the lady needs a tranquilliser - Italian style.

His colleagues successfully open the door,

and Massimo delivers on his promise.

Mission accomplished, the team can head back to base.

Nearby, work is underway on the temporary bridge.

The specially built walkway delivers thousands of people

to the Redentore church for the duration of the two-day festival.

Over 300 metres long and built across 25 wooden pontoons,

it takes a day to complete.

Before the middle section is put in,

blocking off the canal to very tall ships, this last one slips through.

FOGHORN SOUNDS

At the dockyard, the fireworks are ready to be transported

to their final position in St Mark's Basin.

With over 5,000 fully primed fireworks on board,

the rafts have to be pulled along carefully by tugboat.

For every inch of the journey, the police ride alongside.

And with the last boats clearing the canal,

the final pieces of the bridge can be pulled into position.

It seems some are already in the party mood.

With celebrations just hours from kicking off, the director

of Venice's Fire services, Alessandra Bashar, knows what chaos is in store.

Redentore is probably the most important day of the year

for Venetians, for Venice.

With so many boats in the water, it could be difficult to reach

the perfect point in a short time,

so we prefer to be there.

It's five o'clock - the festival is about to begin.

Venice's emergency teams assemble on the water as party boats

jockey for the best view of the fireworks.

On the completed bridge,

the Bishop of Venice officially opens the celebration.

The temporary bridge will bring thousands of worshippers

to Palladio's Redentore church.

This may be an ancient religious festival, but today,

it has a very 21st-century edge.

As the sun goes down,

tens of thousands of partygoers pour onto the water.

Local police Commissioner Giordano Zwin is preparing for the long night ahead.

Giordano must ensure the waterways don't get too congested,

but already hundreds of boats are gathering.

Up to 5,000 boats, heaving with young Venetians and tourists, gather to celebrate.

It's still early, but some people are already getting out of hand.

The main task for the police now is to keep everyone away from the explosive fireworks zone.

HE BLOWS HIS WHISTLE

For the police, this is one of the most challenging nights of the year.

They must keep control of thousands of young partygoers.

Revellers often tie their boats together, to create giant party rafts.

These block the waterways and drift towards the fireworks zone.

The paramedics are also heading out.

And the first call-out has already come through.

A man has passed out on one of the boats, but the caller wasn't clear about which one.

After a frantic search,

the paramedics finally think they've located the right boat.

The patient is now conscious but clearly a little worse for wear.

The team need to get the man to the ambulance boat

where they can assess him, away from the crowds.

The 118 team will help the man sober up before escorting him to shore.

With the fireworks just moments from being launched,

Giordano doesn't have long to clear the area.

With an extra police boat to lend a hand,

Giordano finally clears the safety zone.

At last, as midnight approaches, all eyes turn skywards.

It takes 35 pontoons to carry the fireworks, and 15 staff

to oversee a performance that leaves revellers awestruck.

APPLAUSE AND CHEERING

After the final celebration in a packed year, it's business as usual

for those who live and work in the city they call La Serenissima.

In Venice, it's like working in a postcard,

but every place is a special moment.

No, I would never change job. This is the most interesting thing.

I am really happy with my job, so it's OK for me.

I hope to be OK for it.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd