Streets coated in mud after mudslide tears through Italian city

Footage shows a torrent of mud tearing through a Bardonecchia river bed

Image credit: LaPresse via AP

Clean-up crews cleared mud-covered roads in an Italian Alpine city on Monday after a mudslide sent water, soil and debris pouring into the streets.

Roads and cars in Bardonecchia, a city near Turin in the Val di Susa mountain valley, were coated in thick, grey sludge following the violent mudslides late on Sunday.

Footage taken by witnesses show huge waves of mud rushing down city streets and through the river banks that go through the city.

There were no victims and five people that were initially believed to be missing have since been accounted for.

In a Facebook post, Piedmont Regional Governor Alberto Cirio said significant damage was done to infrastructure, buildings, and cars.

Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani promised support from the federal government.

In a social media post, firefighters said crews had rescued six people from an overturned camper.

Located at 1,300 metres (4,265 feet), Bardonecchia is a popular destination in the Italian Alps for both winter mountain sports and summer hiking, and several rivers, streams, creeks and tributaries feed into it including the Frejus, Melezet and Rochemolles.

On Sunday, the city of 3,000 was celebrating its patron feast day, St Hipolito, with daylong activities and games and planned fireworks at night, according to the city’s tourism agency.

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