Flash floods kill at least eight in Italy

(EPA)

Authorities say at least six people have died in flash floods as torrential rains lashed Italy from the Alps to Sicily.

Six people died in Borghetto Vara, a village known for its grapes, wines and chestnuts, about 45 miles from Genoa and near the Cinque Terre, a popular vacation area. Roads and the railway line were blocked.

Two of the dead were in Aulla in the nearby province of Massa Carrara, famed for its marble.

The storm today spared few areas, but Liguria and Tuscany were the hardest hit. Rome was under a flood alert but the storm apparently caused little damage in the capital.

AP