Prosecutors investigate hiker deaths in Italy gorge flood

MILAN — Italy’s environmental minister urged prosecutors on Tuesday to look at both possible criminal responsibility and administrative lapses that may have contributed to the deaths of 10 people swept away by a flash flood as they hiked through a narrow gorge in the southern region of Calabria.

Rescue workers saved 23 people Monday after a torrent some 2.2 metres deep filled the narrow Raganello Gorge, which features rock faces as high as 700 metres, in the vast Pollino National Park. Eleven people were hospitalized, including four children who lost either one or both of their parents.

Three people who had been listed as missing were located elsewhere, but officials had not yet called off the search as there may be hikers in the gorge without a guide.

“Italy is tired of crying for the dead. Enough,” environment minister Sergio Costa said during a visit to the scene. “If what happened is the result of negligence, sloppiness or a lack of awareness of the risks, we are facing a serious situation that we need to get to the bottom of.”

The tragedy came six days after a highway bridge collapse in the northern port city of Genoa killed 43 people.

Italian prosecutors on Tuesday opened a criminal investigation into the gorge deaths, and the government has asked for a separate administrative proceeding to determine if there were lapses that contributed to the deaths.

Prosecutor Eugenio Facciolla said authorities were investigating possible charges including manslaughter, causing bodily harm and official negligence, the news agency ANSA reported. No target has been identified.