At Least 11 Hikers Have Been Killed And Others Are Missing After Heavy A Flash Flooding In Southern Italy.
They Were Walking In A Canyon In A National Park In The Calabria Region When They Were Hit By A Flood Swollen By Heavy Rain.
Eighteen Other People Were Rescued, Including A 10-Year-Old Boy, The Regional Head Of Civil Protection Said. Six People Have Been Taken To Hospital.
Local Officials Say The Exact Number Of Those Unaccounted For Is Unclear.
Spotlights Were Brought In As The Search In The Pollino National Park Carried On Through The Night.
Carlo Tansi, Head Of Civil Protection, Told Reporters That When The Hikers Were Hit By The Water They Were “Catapulted Out Like Bullets” And Were Washed Down The Valley For About 3km (Two Miles).
“The Raganello Canyon Is Narrow And Tall, It Can Get Up To 1km (3,200ft) High,” He Said. “The Canyon Was Filled Up With Water In A Really Short Time.”
Eugenio Facciolla, Chief Prosecutor Of The Provincial Capital Cosenza, Said Rescuers Were Trying To Spot Small Patches Of Shore Or Tiny Islands Where Survivors May Have Ended Up.