Misadventure for a group of 51 students from the 'Fermi' scientific high school in Sulmona, who have been stranded since 10.30 this morning in Austria due to bad weather which made the Brenner pass impassable.
The group was returning from an educational trip to Salzburg when it got stuck along the road due to the heavy snowfall in progress.
The problem concerns three fifth grade classes, four accompanying teachers and the driver of the bus transporting the school group.
The professors, after asking for help from the Austrian police, got in touch with the Minister of Transport who activated the crisis unit through the Farnesina.
"We asked for blankets, food and water since we have been stopped since this morning. The kids are all in good condition" - reports Francesca Abbriano, one of the teachers on board the bus.
At the Brenner Pass there is currently 40 centimeters of new snow.
In the last few hours, various trucks have been stuck or otherwise broken down: for this reason the authorities have decided to close the artery leading to Italy.
Beyond the border, the motorway is blocked with over thirty kilometers of traffic jams and all available snow removal vehicles in action to reactivate traffic.
Over a meter of snow at Brenner and the motorway closed for safety reasons in Vipiteno in the direction of Austria.
This is the situation on the A22 due to the heavy snowfall that is affecting the area, with a queue before Vipiteno which has currently reached four kilometres.
The situation in Austria is much more serious: on the A13 in Tyrol, near Brennersee shortly after the Brenner pass, some trucks are blocking traffic.
Despite the ban on overtaking, APA reports, some heavy vehicles moved into the overtaking lane, becoming stranded and thus obstructing the passage of vehicles, including snowploughs.
The motorway in Tyrol is therefore blocked from Brenner to Innsbruck and there are 20 rescue teams and snow plows working to restore traffic.
Reproduction reserved © Copyright ANSA