Italy Cable Car Fall: 13 Dead After Accident Near Lake Maggiore

Thirteen people have been killed and two children seriously injured after a cable car fell on a mountain near Lake Maggiore in northern Italy on Sunday.

The accident happened on a service transporting passengers from the resort town of Stresa up the nearby Mottarone mountain in the region of Piedmont.

Emergency services say they were alerted just after 12:00 local time (11:00 BST) on Sunday adding that two survivors, aged five and nine, were taken by helicopter to a Turin hospital.

Alpine rescue officials confirmed in a Sunday evening tweet that the final tally of those involved was 13 dead and two injured, after the death toll steadily rose in the hours after the accident as the wreckage was searched.

The cause of the incident remains unclear, but local reports suggest the cable carrying the vehicle may have failed about 300m (984ft) from the top of the mountain.

Police and fire officials were among those who responded, with rescuers facing a crash site on steep and difficult terrain.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi described the crash as a “tragic accident” and said he was receiving updates from the minister of infrastructure and transport, as well as local officials.

In a statement he expressed condolences of the whole Government to the families of the victims, with a special thought for the seriously injured children and their families.