Two dead, 100 evacuated after landslides in northern Italian town
Two landslides close to the northern resort town of Courmayeur have killed one tourist and caused panic among many others, with over 100 people evacuated.
A couple from Milan was reported to have died after the landslides, caused by storms in the Val Ferret area close to the Swiss border at the foot of Mont Blanc.
Their car was one of several swept away by mud after one of the landslides flooded a small side valley close to the town of Planpincieux.
The body of the man, 71, was recovered on Monday evening and firefighters were on Tuesday working to recover his wife's body, which they had identified as trapped under the vehicle, Corriere della Sera reported.
A total of 123 people were evacuated from the valley, many transported by helicopter. The evacuees spent the night at a local golf club and on Tuesday morning the Val Ferret muncipality ordered the evacuation of approximately a further 200 people.
"At a certain point, the street disappeared, you couldn't make anything out anymore. You feel like an ant overwhelmed by the mountain," one of the evacuated visitors told La Stampa.
The video below shows some of the damage caused to the area. Several nearby villages reported damage, and on Tuesday the main road to Val Ferret remained closed off.
READ ALSO: An 'unstoppable' landslide is tearing apart a village in central Italy
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A couple from Milan was reported to have died after the landslides, caused by storms in the Val Ferret area close to the Swiss border at the foot of Mont Blanc.
Their car was one of several swept away by mud after one of the landslides flooded a small side valley close to the town of Planpincieux.
The body of the man, 71, was recovered on Monday evening and firefighters were on Tuesday working to recover his wife's body, which they had identified as trapped under the vehicle, Corriere della Sera reported.
A total of 123 people were evacuated from the valley, many transported by helicopter. The evacuees spent the night at a local golf club and on Tuesday morning the Val Ferret muncipality ordered the evacuation of approximately a further 200 people.
"At a certain point, the street disappeared, you couldn't make anything out anymore. You feel like an ant overwhelmed by the mountain," one of the evacuated visitors told La Stampa.
The video below shows some of the damage caused to the area. Several nearby villages reported damage, and on Tuesday the main road to Val Ferret remained closed off.
READ ALSO: An 'unstoppable' landslide is tearing apart a village in central Italy
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