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Clean-up work on Ischia: Tons of rubble and mud and scrap
Photo: Ciro de Luca / REUTERS
After the devastating storm on the Italian island of Ischia with one dead and several injured, the authorities are still looking for missing people.
The rescue workers were on duty all night Sunday, as several media reported.
The responsible prefecture in the southern Italian city of Naples published new figures on Sunday morning after a crisis meeting.
Accordingly, eleven people are still missing.
According to the authorities, the number of people injured fell from 13 to 4, with one person being seriously injured.
A woman lost her life in the storm.
Persistent storms and rain made rescue work by the fire brigade, police and civil defense more difficult on Saturday.
The weather conditions improved on Sunday.
According to the prefecture, the emergency services have so far evacuated 167 people from their homes and accommodated them in a hotel, among other things.
Around 150 firefighters and around 220 police officers were on site on Sunday.
The government in Rome announced a Council of Ministers meeting for Sunday morning to declare a state of emergency in the region.
This is necessary, among other things, so that funds can be released quickly for help in the affected region.
Storm and heavy rain hit the Mediterranean island in the Gulf of Naples on Saturday night and caused serious damage, especially in the northern coastal towns of Casamicciola and Lacco Ameno.
Landslides came off the slopes, floods of water, mud and rock drove through the streets, damaged cars and buses and partially tore them into the sea.
Some wrecks are floating in the water, others are stuck, demolished, in the mud masses, some of which are meters high.
Firefighters are also searching for missing persons in the wrecks.
The area has long been considered a risk area for landslides.
The first experts voiced that too little had been done there to protect against such extreme events in recent years.
mak/dpa