Up to 30 people are feared dead dead after an Italian hotel was covered by an avalanche following an earthquake. The snowslide covered cars, farm animals and part of Hotel Rigopiano in Abruzzo, east of Rome, as it violently surged down a mountainside yesterday. Dozens of guests were staying at the luxury spa hotel in the region of Pescara at the time. Local media are reporting that up to 30 people have been found dead in the hotel. Governor of Pescara, Antonio Di Marco, said on Facebook: "Unfortunately, a terrible tragedy happened, it seems that there may be some fatalities, but this has yet to be confirmed."
Emergency crews have been desperately trying to get to victims but have been hampered by a snow storm. Phones at the exclusive venue are also completely dead and frantic relatives have been unable to get through to guests mobile phones. On its website, Italian news agency Ansa quoted the head of a rescue squad that reached the hotel as saying: "There are many dead."
The National Mountain Rescue Corps said last night could take them hours to get to the victims due to the treacherous conditions. The road to the nearest town has been covered in a two-metre high blanket of snow. The luxury hotel posted on its Facebook page just hours before the avalanche: "Because of bad weather the phone lines are out of service."
The avalanche hit just hours after a moderately powerful magnitude 5.4 earthquake – followed by a 4.7 aftershock. The tremor hit the centre of Italy - with the epicentre near Amatrice - and the second quake hit an hour later.
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