One dead, others still missing in landslide on Italian island, Authorities and emergency services reported that a woman was killed and about a dozen other people were still missing on Saturday after heavy rains caused a landslide on the Italian island of Ischia. Early on Saturday morning, a wave of mud and debris swept through the small town of Casamicciola Terme, engulfing at least one house and sending cars into the water, according to media reports and emergency services.
One dead, others still missing in landslide on Italian island
A woman’s body was found by rescuers, while around a dozen or so people were unaccounted for by early Saturday evening, according to the prefect of Naples, Claudio Palomba. He said however that some of those reported missing earlier were later found safe, including one family with a newborn baby.
“We are afraid that there might be other victims, but so far the current figure is one dead,” Luca Cari, a spokesman for the fire service, told AFP. The rescue effort was hampered by continued rain and high winds, which also delayed ferries bringing reinforcements from the mainland. Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi had earlier warned there were people trapped in the mud, saying it was a “very serious” situation. However, he denied a statement by his colleague Matteo Salvini, the deputy prime minister and infrastructure minister, that eight people had died, saying this had not been confirmed.
– Complex rescue operation –
The heavy rain sent torrents of mud through the streets of Casamicciola Terme, on the north of Ischia, a lush island located near Capri that is thronged with tourists in the summer months. Trees were upturned and cars left battered on the side of the road or in the water, according to AFP journalists.
The fire service earlier said one house had been overwhelmed by the mud and that two people had been rescued from a car swept into the sea. In the worst-affected area of Casamicciola Terme, at least 30 families were trapped in their homes without water or electricity, with mud and debris blocking the road, ANSA news agency reported.
Officials later said they expected to evacuate and find temporary homes for between 150 and 200 people by Saturday evening. “The rescue effort remains complex due to the weather conditions,” said the department for civil protection, but stressed teams would keep working through the night using headlights.
Ischia residents were urged by local authorities to remain indoors so as not to obstruct the rescue effort. Giorgia Meloni, the prime minister, expressed sympathy to those impacted and scheduled an emergency cabinet meeting for Sunday to address the situation. Two people perished in the 2017 earthquake that struck Casamicciola Terme. Only a few weeks prior, 11 people lost their lives in central eastern Italy due to flooding and heavy rain.
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