During the days of Operation Avalanche, the entire Salerno coastline suffered fierce shelling: Eboli and even more so Battipaglia had been targeted, so most of the population had fled to places considered safer, and among these was Campagna, a town in the province of Salerno, bordering Eboli, which had the advantage of not being far from Piana del Sele. It was also well defended, because it was surrounded by mountains.

The bombing affected parts of the town, including the Town Hall square. The bombs fell on the crowds lining up to receive their bread rations: the Allied planes left a painful trail of blood behind them. Over one hundred and sixty dead were counted, and on top of that, rescue was not timely as a result of the confusion caused by the war actions. During those hours, the action of the Jewish doctors, already interned in the Campagna camp, who were involved in a tragic moment, was crucial, as they worked to help the stricken civilians. That tragic episode was recounted by one of the two doctors many years later, Chaim Pajes, in an interview with Judith Goodstein and Carlotta Scaramuzzi, for the magazine Il Sapere in October 2002.

This terrible tragedy is commemorated at the main site where it took place with a memorial dedicated to the victims, where they are remembered each year through an institutional celebration.