Portugal announces day of mourning for Madeira victims

The Portuguese government announced Thursday that a day of national mourning will be held on Friday to mourn the victims of an accident when a large tree fell down, crushing to death of 13 people in Madeira.

The announcement came on Thursday after the regular weekly cabinet meeting in Lisbon.

"The national mourning coincides with the funeral ceremonies of the victims of the accident as a way of expressing the sorrow and solidarity of the whole country," the government said in a statement.

Minister of the Presidency and Administrative Modernization Maria Manuel Leitao Marques will represent the Portuguese government at a funeral ceremony in Madeira.

A large, 200-year-old oak tree fell to the ground on Tuesday in the Largo do Monte, in Funchal, capital of the autonomous region of Madeira, as crowds assembled for the Our Lady of the Mount religious procession.

Thirteen people were killed and 49 others injured. A one-year-old baby, one French woman and a Hungarian man were among the dead. Seven remain hospitalized on Thursday.