Dog trapped in car for 72 hours after landslides in Italy kill eight people
A small dog trapped inside a car for 72 hours has been rescued after landslides hit the Italian resort island of Ischia in the Gulf of Naples.
The dog had been inside the overturned car since Saturday but was freed on Monday by authorities. The whereabouts of its owners remain unknown.
Eight people have now been declared dead after the weekend’s landslide struck the port town of Casamicciola. Five people remain missing and are feared buried under the mud and debris.
Rescue workers recovered the eighth victim on Monday, who was identified as a 15-year-old boy whose two younger siblings were confirmed dead over the weekend. A three-week-old baby and his parents were also among the deceased.
The other victims were identified as a 31-year-old resident and a Bulgarian tourist.
Heavy rainfall triggered the landslide, with a mass of mud and debris from Mount Epomeo, the highest mountain on the island, crashing down through Casamicciola before sunrise on Saturday.
About 30 houses were submerged by the mud and water, and more than 200 residents in the town of 8,300 remain homeless, according to officials.
The island was inundated with 126 millimetres (nearly five inches) of rain in six hours, the heaviest rainfall in 20 years, said authorities.
Environmental experts have noted that the landslide was exacerbated by building in areas of high risk on the mountainous island, which is also susceptible to earthquakes.
“There is territory that cannot be occupied. You cannot change the use of a zone where there is water. The course of the water created this disaster,” geologist Riccardo Caniparoli told RAI state TV.
“There are norms and laws that were not respected.”
Vincenzo De Luca, president of the Campagna region where Ischia is situated, said houses in high-risk areas must be demolished, and suggested they had been illegally built.
“People need to understand that you cannot live in some areas. There is no such thing as the necessity (to build) illegally,” Mr De Luca told RAI.
“Buildings in fragile zones should be demolished.”
The Italian government declared a state of emergency for the island on Sunday, and has set aside an initial aid package of €2m (£1.7m).
