126mm of heavy rain in 6 hours, 8 dead, 4 missing… “Caused by the climate crisis”
A landslide caused by heavy rain on the island of Ischia in the Gulf of Naples in southern Italy has left eight people dead and four missing so far.
Italy’s ANSA news agency, daily Corriere della Sera, and public broadcaster Rai presented the real names, photos and stories of the victims of this accident in detail on the 28th (local time).
On the morning of the 26th, a landslide that swept through the residential area of Casamicola, a northern city on the island of Ischia, destroyed the lives of two families.
Gianluca Monti, a well-known taxi driver in the area, and his wife, Valentina Castaña, and their three children were buried in mud before they had time to escape.
While their 6-year-old and 11-year-old children were found dead, the search for three other members of the family continues.
The local media reported that the 6-year-old girl was wearing a pink nightgown as if she had defecated while sleeping.
Ansa News Agency said some relatives reached the scene before rescuers arrived and struggled to save the Monti family despite additional landslide risks.
Pizza chef Maurizio Scoto di Minico, 32, his wife, Giovanna Magella, 30, and their three-week-old baby were also killed.
Among the victims was Nikolinka Gantseva Blagova, a 58-year-old woman from Bulgaria.
It is known that Blakova recently obtained Italian citizenship and moved to the island of Ischia.
Eleonora Cirabella (31), the first person confirmed dead, was a saleswoman who was found about 100m away from her home.
Their roommate, Salvatore Impaliazzo, is still missing.
An eighth death was confirmed this morning.
It is believed that the man is a relative of Monty’s family, according to the local media.
On the island of Ischia, rescue and search operations continue on the third day of the accident.
The rescue team is mobilizing professional divers to search the nearby sea, considering the possibility that the missing people could have been pushed into the sea while riding in a car.
The Italian government has declared the island of Ischia a disaster area.
At the time of the accident, the island of Ischia experienced its heaviest rainfall in 20 years, with 126 mm of rain falling in just six hours.
Experts interpreted the landslide disaster on the island of Ischia as a result of the climate crisis.
In September, 11 people were killed in record-breaking rains that hit Italy’s central Marche region.
/happy news
