AT LEAST THREE people have died after heavy rain in southern Italy caused flash flooding and mudslides.
The dead include a 10-year-old boy who was killed in a mudslide near Messina, Sicily as his family were attempting to flee their home.
Two other bodies found today are those of a father and son, aged 55 and 25. It is understood they died when a landslide destroyed houses in Saponara near Messina.
La Repubblica reports that the mayor of Messina ordered the closure of all schools today in response to the crisis, while the mayor of nearby Barellona urged residents to stay in their homes, according to Corriere Della Sera. Fifty housesholds in the Migliardo Gala area have been trapped in their homes by the mud.
The muddy floodwater has also caused serious damage to bridges, roads and railways in the area. Meanwhile, 100 soldiers have been deployed to help residents in the southern Italian region of Calabria cope with the deluge.
Two years ago, severe mudslides in Messina killed 37 people.
The recent flooding has been blamed on the failure to clean storm drains and on excessive building in the affected areas.
Footage of the flooding and its aftermath today shows cars being pulled along and left half-buried beneath mounds of mud:
(Video uploaded by AssociatedPress)
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