Four killed as Swiss storms trigger flooding, landslides

Berlin, June 30

Storms in Switzerland and northern Italy caused extensive flooding and landslides, leaving at least four people dead, authorities said on Sunday.

The bodies of three people were recovered following a landslide in the Fontana area of the Maggia valley in the Italian-speaking Ticino canton (state) on the southern side of the Alps. Storms and heavy rain pounded southern and western Switzerland on Saturday and overnight.

Camping sites along the Maggia River were evacuated, and part of the small Visletto road bridge collapsed. One person was missing in the nearby Lavizzara valley. Farther north, the Rhone River burst its banks in several areas of Valais canton, flooding a highway and a railway line.

Police said side valleys south of the Rhone saw particularly heavy rain, and the body of a man whose partner had reported him missing was found Sunday at a hotel in the Alpine resort of Saas-Grund. They said he is believed to have been caught by surprise by floodwaters. — AP