The number of people missing after an avalanche buried a hotel in central Italy has increased to 24, while there is still a hope to find more survivors, head of the Italian Civil Protection Department Fabrizio Curcio said Sunday, Sputnik reported.
The province authorities said earlier in the day that one more person was included in the list of those missing, with the total number reaching 24. The Prosecutor's office said in a statement that it could be a Senegalese man, who worked at the hotel.
"Those who work in such difficult conditions are doing everything to find more people who are still alive… So there is always a hope," Curcio told Rai3 TV channel.
The rescue operation is still ongoing.
On Wednesday, central Italy was shaken by a series of earthquakes, with the biggest jolts ranging from 5.1 to 5.7 in magnitude and felt in Rome. On the same day, the avalanche in the region of Abruzzo buried the Rigopiano di Farindola hotel with dozens of guests and staff inside, killing at least five people.