🚨 ITALIAN MOTHER KI-LLED IN DOMINICAN REPUBLIC RESORT INFERNO — 1,700 EVACUATED AS VISIT HOME TURNS INTO TRAG-EDY
The woman killed in the massive inferno that tore through a Dominican Republic resort was an Italian mom of two visiting family on the island when the blaze erupted.
Francesca Valentino was the sole fatality at the Viva Wyndham Dominicus Beach Hotel, which was engulfed in flames Friday.
The fire forced 1,700 others to evacuate.
Valentino, who would have turned 46 in July, was killed by smoke inhalation, authorities said.
Francesca Valentino was killed when a fire raged through a Dominican Republic resort.Obtained by NY Post
She was enjoying a trip with her husband of a decade when the tragedy occurred, Napoli Corriere reported.
The couple was visiting friends and family in the fishing village of Bayahibe, where her husband is originally from and where they first met.
Valentino had moved from Caserta to Rome and then to the Dominican Republic, and struck up a romance with her husband, with the pair marrying in 2017, according to her Facebook.
They welcomed two daughters on the island before ultimately moving back to Valentino’s native Caserta, a city 22 miles north of Napoli.
A former dancer, Valentino managed a small bed and breakfast there.
In 2018, she was interviewed by the Italian docuseries program “Mollo tutto e cambio vita,” which translates to “I’m dropping everything and changing my life,” and features the stories of those who leave their lives in Italy to move across the globe.
The fire was ignited due to “roof structures made of palm” and strong winds.Gojko Culibrk via REUTERS
She and her brother, David, quit their respective jobs as a fashion designer in Milan and as a ballet instructor in Rome to settle in the tourist town in 2014 — with David saying he felt “unsatisfied” with the hustle of European life.
Both found love, married and had children on the island.
“I left Italy with a two-month plane ticket, but I never went back. I’ve now been living here for four years, found love, got married, and had a daughter, who’s already two years old. I’m happy with my choice; I’d never go back,” Francesca told the outlet at the time.
Valentino leaves behind her husband and two children.Facebook/Francesca Valentino
The mom of two is the only one to have been killed in the fierce and fast-spreading fire, which authorities say was ignited due to “roof structures made of palm” and unfavorable weather conditions.
“Preliminary observations indicate that the fire spread rapidly due to the flammable nature of parts of the roof structures made of palm, as well as wind conditions,” the Dominican Emergency Operations Center (COE) said.
Three others were taken to medical facilities in Bayahibe, and six others were treated at the scene, according to the Dominican Republic’s pre-hospital emergency directorate.
SOURCE: https://nypost.com/2026/06/20/world-news/italian-mom-killed-in-dominican-republic-fire-ided-as-francesca-valentino/
