Brussels, 29/03/2012 (Agence Europe) - The European Regional Development Fund will come to the rescue of Pompeii, funding a major project to restore the area of the UNESCO site that was seriously damaged by the torrential rainfall that fell on the Campania region of Italy at the end of October 2011. The announcement was made by the European Commission on Thursday 29 March. The rain aggravated the damage brought by violent storms in 2010 which caused partial collapse at the archaeological site. The broader objective is to ensure that the site remains a major tourist attraction for the region. The project, “Attrattori culturali, naturali e turismo”, results from a request made by the Italian authorities to the European, Commission. In giving the go-ahead, Regional Policy Commissioner Johannes Hahn is convinced that ““this will have a positive impact on the tourism sector and economy in the area, and by extension on the lives of all citizens in the region”. (MD/transl.rt)