Two dead after landslide hits southern Switzerland
Some 200 litres of rain per square metre fell in the upper Maggia Valley in the space of 24 hours.
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After a landslide hit the Maggia Valley in canton Ticino, rescuers from Swiss Air-Rescue (Rega) recovered two bodies on Sunday. One person is still missing.
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Dos personas muertas tras un corrimiento de tierras en el sur de Suiza
The accident occurred in the Fontana area, according to cantonal police. They did not initially provide any information on the identity of the victims. Identification is underway, it said.
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The Maggia Valley was hit by heavy thunderstorms on Saturday evening and into the night. According to police, the cantonal road through the Maggia Valley is blocked, because a bridge collapsed in Visletto, a district of Cevio, Ticino. Several side valleys are therefore no longer accessible by road.
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The campsites along the Maggia and a summer camp in Mogno were also evacuated, it was reported.
The Swiss president, Viola Amherd, expressed her condolences on X (formerly Twitter). She wrote that her thoughts were with the people affected by the storms in several regions of Switzerland. Amherd urged caution: “The situation remains tense. Please take care and follow the instructions of the authorities.”
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