Several people are missing in the canton of Ticino after a landslide caused by torrential rains that have hit much of the country since Saturday, police said on Sunday.
The major storms “caused a landslide in the Fontana region and people were reported missing,” the police wrote without providing further details.
Rescue operations are particularly difficult due to bad weather conditions, reports this source.
An appeal to evacuate homes near the Maggia River was launched early Sunday morning for residents of Prato-Sornico and the Maggia Valley, where the missing are being searched for.
The roads are closed and the campsites located along the river have been evacuated, the cantonal police also indicated.
In addition, a bridge was washed away by the waters, blocking the cantonal road.
Several valleys near the Maggia Valley are no longer accessible and electricity has been cut off. Part of the canton is also without drinking water, according to the federal warning system Swissalert.
Since Saturday afternoon, a large part of Switzerland has been affected by violent storms accompanied by very heavy rainfall.
Overflows of the Rhône and its tributaries, swollen by torrential rains and melting snow, forced the evacuation of several hundred people and the closure of numerous roads, according to local authorities in Valais.
The country has already experienced violent storms and exceptional rainfall over the weekend, causing at least one death and significant damage in the south-east of its territory.
