Emergency workers stepped up efforts to find 11 people missing on the southern Italian resort island of Ischia, a day after a landslide triggered by torrential rain devastated the small town on Sunday.
Rescue divers scoured the water near the port of Casamicciola Terme, where a wave of mud, debris and rocks broke off the island’s highest mountain and crashed onto houses and roads, killing at least one person on Saturday.
Several cars were thrown into the sea. Aerial footage showed several buildings destroyed by the landslide that engulfed the city. One resident said he saw a “waterfall of water and mud.”
Naples prefect Claudio Palombo says the death toll remains at 1 but 11 people are missing, adding that improving weather conditions should help search efforts.
Densely populated, Ischia is a volcanic island located about 30 km from Naples. It attracts visitors with its thermal baths and picturesque coastline.
According to local authorities, two families, including several children, are among the missing.
Italy’s new government, led by Giorgia Meloni, held a cabinet meeting on Sunday and issued a decree aimed at providing emergency aid to people in need after the disaster.
Civil Defense Minister Nello Musumechi says the decree provides for an initial aid package of 2 million euros.
Statistics show that the hilly island has many houses that have been built illegally, putting residents at constant risk of floods and earthquakes.
