At least six dead after chunk of glacier breaks loose on Italian mountain

At least six people have died after a large chunk of alpine glacier broke loose and slid down a mountainside in Italy.

The collapse on Sunday afternoon sent ice, snow and rock slamming into hikers on a popular trail on the Marmolada peak, killing at least six and injuring eight, authorities said.

Rescuers were checking number plates in the car park as part of checks to determine how many people might be unaccounted for, a process that could take hours, said Walter Milan, a spokesman for the Corps.

It had earlier tweeted that the ongoing search of the peak involved rescue dogs and at least five helicopters, but the operation was paused on Sunday night amid fears that more of the glacier could come away.

The SUEM (Servizio Urgenza Emergenza Medica) dispatch service, based in the nearby Veneto region, said 18 people who were above the area where the ice struck would be evacuated by the rescue corps.

Marmolada, which is about 3,300 metres (11,000ft) high, is the tallest peak in the eastern Dolomites.

It was not immediately clear what caused the section of ice to break away but the intense heatwave that has gripped Italy since late June could be a factor, said Milan.

The injured were flown to several hospitals in the regions of Trentino-Alto Adige and Veneto, according to rescue services.