Severe storms leave 2 people missing in Italy

Two people were reported missing in Italy in the early hours of Wednesday after ferocious storms lashed several regions causing floods and extensive damage, reported Xinhua.

A search and rescue operation was underway as of mid-Wednesday, after a woman and her son were swept away by a landslide while they were travelling on board of a light commercial vehicle in San Felice a Cancello, a small town near Caserta, southern Campania region, according to local authorities.

The two were working in the fields when the storm hit the town and were engulfed in mud as they were trying to reach home, local mayor Emilio Nuzzo told state-run Rai TV channel.

The mayor said rescue teams had found the wreck of the vehicle and search for the two missing is continuing with dogs, drones and other mechanical tools. "It was shocking, an impressive amount of rain pouring down in a very short time," the mayor told RAI. The Fire Department said 10 firefighter teams were involved in the search and rescue efforts.

Meanwhile, the Civil Protection Agency issued a new severe weather alert for storms and hydrogeological risk in the surrounding Campania region, warning that "the thunderstorms will be marked by uncertainty and rapidity of evolution, and could be particularly intense."

The agency issued the same alert for seven more regions in central and southern Italy.

The severe weather also affected other areas across the country, including the northern Lombardy region surrounding Milan, the country's economic capital, and Emilia Romagna, where heavy rainfall and strong winds caused disruption to road, highway and air traffic.