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Search operation of the Italian fire brigade
Photo: Vigili del Fuoco / AP / dpa
Four people have died in a boat accident on Lake Maggiore in northern Italy. This was announced by the fire brigade in the morning. Of the total of 23 people on board, 19 were rescued.
The sailboat capsized on Sunday around 19 p.m. during a storm at the southern end of the lake near the town of Sesto Calende. According to the prosecutor's office in the city of Busto Arsizio near Milan, the deceased are a man and a woman from Italy, a Russian woman and a man from Israel. According to media reports, the wife of the boat owner is also among the victims. Israel's Foreign Ministry confirmed the death of a 50-year-old Israeli.
According to initial findings, the boat was rented for a birthday party. It is likely to have been a houseboat – according to media reports, boats of this type are increasingly rented out to tourists on Italy's second largest lake on the border with Switzerland. The president of the Lombardy region, Attilio Fontana, had written about a "sailboat" on Facebook during the night.
The boat had probably been surprised by a sudden hurricane. Several people were able to swim to the shore, which was about 150 meters away. The Coast Guard and Fire Brigade were deployed with boats, a helicopter and divers. The carabinieri determined the background of the accident, such as why the boat did not return to port in time – there had already been severe weather warnings.
SAK/DPA