Five dead in northern Italy storms, Sicily wildfires

At least five people were found dead in Italy on Tuesday following violent storms in the north and wildfires in Sicily, which could lead the government to declare a state of emergency in the hardest-hit regions.

A 16-year-old girl on a camping trip was among two people who died in storms that hit northern Italy. The teenager was killed when a tree fell on her tent during a scout camp near Brescia, after high winds and torrential rain overnight.

Milan residents reported torrential rain and hail in the early hours of Tuesday morning, which flooded streets and uprooted trees, many of which fell onto parked cars. But even as the north was drenched, the heatwave across the south persisted, with temperatures of 47.6 degrees Celsius recorded in the eastern Sicilian city of Catania on Monday.

Italy's Civil Protection Department on Tuesday reported "extensive fires" across the south, saying air support had been requested for nine incidents in Sicily, nine in Calabria and another in Sardinia.