THIRTEEN people were missing today after heavy rains caused a landslide on the Italian island of Ischia, media reports said.

In Casamicciola Terme, on the north of the island, “a landslide engulfed a house, and searches are under way for possible missing persons”, the fire service said in a first update.

The Ansa and AGI news agencies later reported that 13 people were missing after the early morning landslide, which began above the small town and reached the seafront.

Among them was a family comprising a husband and wife and a newborn baby who lived near where the landslide began, according to Ansa.

The mud dragged cars down the hill, with at least one vehicle swept into the sea, from which two people were rescued, the fire service confirmed.

Local authorities have called on residents of Ischia, located off the coast of Naples, to stay inside so as not to hinder the rescue operation.

Casamicciola Terme was hit by an earthquake in 2017, in which two people died. – AFP, November 26, 2022.