George Clooney Celebrated by Italian Locals After He Helps with Flood Recovery Efforts: 'He Cares'

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

[size=48]George Clooney Celebrated by Italian Locals After He Helps with Flood Recovery Efforts: 'He Cares'
The Oscar winner has offered to help locals displaced by flooding near his vacation home in Lake Como
By Kara Warner and Praxilla Trabattoni
August 04, 2021 09:00 AM[/size]

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.][url=https://www.pinterest.com/pin/create/link/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpeople.com%2Fmovies%2Fgeorge-clooney-celebrated-by-italian-locals-after-he-helps-with-flood-recovery-efforts-he-cares%2F%3Futm_source%3Dpinterest.com%26utm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_campaign%3Dsocial-share-article%26utm_content%3D20210804%26utm_term%3Dundefined&media=https%3A%2F%2Fimagesvc.meredithcorp.io%2Fv3%2Fmm%2Fimage%3Furl%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Fstatic.onecms.io%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F20%2F2021%2F08%2F03%2Fgeorge-clooney-2.jpg&description=George Clooney Celebrated by Italian Locals After He Helps with Flood Recovery Efforts%3A %27He Cares%27][/url]

CREDIT: DANIELA COLOMBO
George Clooney is using his celebrity for good in an effort to help to his Italian neighbors.
After the area of Laglio near his Lake Como home was hit by flooding and landslides last week, the actor, 60, is being celebrated by his neighbors for taking time to tour the damaged areas and speak with locals about how he might be able to help with cleanup and rebuilding efforts. He also found some time to take photos with everyone who asked.
According to the Evening Standard, 60 local residents had to be evacuated due to the storm.
Local mayor Roberto Pozzi tells PEOPLE that Clooney, who is in Italy with wife Amal and twins Ella and Alexander, 4, "wanted to get a first hand idea of what was going on."
"He came over to the local city council on his own, by foot, and then together we went to see the landslide," Pozzi says. "He wanted to understand in person what had happened. He was very impacted by what he saw. He told us he would take some initiatives to help."



RELATED: George Clooney Is Helping Locals Near Lake Como Recover After Devastating Flooding
For more on George Clooney, pick up the latest issue of PEOPLE on newsstands Friday


Pozzi thinks The Tender Bar director wanted to show support and also raise awareness by making a personal appearance and taking photos with locals.

"His stopping to be photographed by people that asked him showed his commitment to supporting the recovery. It shows how keen he is, how interested he is in this area of which he has already been made an honorary citizen," says Pozzi. "It's pretty clear that after 20 years here in Laglio, he cares. If he weren't profoundly attached to the town he would have gone somewhere else. He is sincerely attached to this town."



RELATED: George and Amal Clooney 'Thrilled to Be Back' on Lake Como with Twins Ella and Alexander, 4: Source
Local resident and journalist Daniela Colombo also praised Clooney for getting "his feet firmly entrenched in the mud."

"He had his photo taken with anyone locally who asked him for a photo," explains Colombo. "He was really considerate as he realized this visit would give visibility to the natural disaster that had taken place, and would be of support to the area and to the people who had lost their homes in this disaster. It was really kind and generous of him to do this."
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
In June, a source in the area told PEOPLE that Clooney and his family had returned to Lake Como after being away longer than usual.
"They didn't spend time in Lake Como last year. It's the first time in two years that they are back in Italy," the source said.

It's just very clever of him to go into town, knowing that pics of him with locals sill be published on social media and the press will follow. Which leads to attention for this natural disaster and puts pressure on governments etc gk help.

We had very heavy floodings in the west of Germany two weeks ago, lots of villages and small towns have been damaged - some nearly completely destroyed, and in the medias, you always hear and read about the same two or three places. But when you read about private initiatives who help (there are lots of contacts between sports clubs, fire services, Rotary and Lions clubs etc), many other places are damaged as well. I just hope that, in the meantime, they all get help by the German Armed Forces, Red Cross, Agency for Technical Relief, and, of course, by our governments. Just in tv shows, more than 100 million euros have been raised, and lots of other campaigns are still running. In our small village, in our town, in the next bigger town - people are raising money everywhere.

But I guess it helps to get attention for additional help, and that's something George understands very well.

Totally agree, Carol, and he's doing something that he does quite a lot when he's there anyway. We just don't happen to know because there isn't an awful incident like this every time he's there. He's supported the village for a long time - basket ball courts for the local children, paint jobs etc. And now of course the place is doubly important to him.......

George's instincts are always to offer help in a crisis. He knows that his fame and the contacts he has make it possible for him to be more effective than most people at drawing attention to a problem. I hope a lot of his friends get on board with this fundraising effort.