ROME, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Before he became one of the faces of Italy's efforts to curb the spread of the coronavirus, Angelo Borrelli was a low-profile official.
However, the arrival of the virus in Italy pushed Borrelli into the spotlight.
As the head of Italy's Civil Protection Department since 2017, Italy's Council of Ministers named Borrelli an "extraordinary commissioner" for the coronavirus crisis on Jan. 31, the same day it declared a national emergency over the outbreak.
In that role, it was Borrelli who took to the airwaves -- every day at first, and then, since mid-April, twice a week -- to help Italians understand the pandemic that was methodically changing their lives.
At each briefing, Borrelli announces the latest domestic data on infections, deaths and hospital visits, but he also takes questions from reporters and explains what the latest information implies for the man in the street.
For many Italian residents, Borrelli's unpolished briefings -- shot from a single camera angle showing a casually dressed Borrelli and one or two expert analysts seated a safe distance from each other -- quickly became required viewing.
"People don't watch the Civil Protection briefings instead of other news sources, it is in addition to other news sources," Marco Loggia, an analyst and author who focuses on Italy's television habits, told Xinhua. "Borrelli has become a trusted figure who gives viewers the context to process what they read in the newspapers and watch on television news programs and see on social media."
Borrelli's profile rose to the point that when he missed three consecutive Civil Protection Department briefings in late March, speculation rose on social media that he might have been infected by COVID-19.
To the relief of many, the speculation turned out to be inaccurate. According to the daily newspaper Il Messaggero, the long work hours simply caught up to Borrelli, who needed a rest. By the fourth day, he was back at the briefings.
The 55-year-old Borrelli is an unlikely public figure: people who work with him say he does not enjoy the spotlight.
Borrelli studied economics and accounting at the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio, a well-regarded but little-known institution south of Rome. He began his professional career as an auditor and tax advisor, eventually finding work in the Civil Protection Department as an administrator in charge of human resources.
A 2017 profile on Borrelli in the news magazine Panorama said he worked his way up through the ranks of the Civil Protection Department with "quiet competence." He was deputy director three years ago when his predecessor, Fabrizio Curcio, stepped down. Paolo Gentiloni, Italian prime minister at the time, appointed Borrelli to take Curcio's place and he has held that role ever since.
Borrelli has seen his fair share of tragedy in the role: from oversight of the reconstruction efforts in the wake of the 2016 earthquake that devastated central Italy to floods that submerged the country's canal city of Venice late last year. But analysts say he will be remembered for his role in keeping people informed during the country's biggest tragedy since the end of World War II. Enditem
