A 15-year-old girl has died ‘after being crushed by a boulder while trying to take a selfie with friends’ at an Italian beauty spot.
The teenager, named locally as Gaia de Gol, along with two pals had gone to Cesana Beach on the banks of the Piave River in Florence on Tuesday to enjoy the sun before tragedy struck.
When the trio arrived at the picturesque spot, they decided to climb a rock wall in their swimsuits where they wanted to snap a selfie.
But as they attempted to scale the rock face, one of the boulders became loose, triggering what local Italian media have called a ‘landslide of rock and earth’ which swept away two of the girls.
The eldest – a 16-year-old, suffered several fractures, but Gol was instantly crushed dead by the heavy boulder.
Medics in an ambulance from the nearby Santa Maria del Prato hospital in Feltre scrambled to the scene, along with a helicopter, but the child was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Belluno and Feltre firefighters also responded with a rubber dinghy, having initially been alerted because it was suspected the girl had fallen into the water.
Local police forces are now attempting to reconstruct the incident and have collected statements from witnesses.
The teenager, named locally as Gaia de Gol, along with two pals had gone to Cesana Beach on the banks of the Piave River in Florence on Tuesday
The eldest – a 16-year-old, suffered several fractures, but Gol was instantly crushed dead by the heavy boulder
It comes after a teenager was washed away to her death while posing for a photo on a rocky beach, as locals desperately tried to save her life last year.
Merlin Septiana, 18, had arrived with her friends to take photos at Semeti Beach in Central Lombok Regency on December 19.
She was seen in one picture taken seconds before being struck wearing headphones that may have blocked the noise of the waves.
The excited schoolgirls took turns posing on a rocky cliff but a rogue wave knocked Merlin off her craggy perch.
Footage showed frantic locals trying to rescue Merlin, seen in the video desperately clinging onto a boulder as the churning waters battered her. But she soon slipped and disappeared under the foamy white torrent.
Storm De Beul, 22, a nature lover who ‘enjoyed being alone’, was found dead in Lapland on October 30 after spending much of the year hiking solo through the remote Jokkmokk region.
He became caught in a devastating blizzard the night before, telling his grandmother in a tragic final message: ‘It’s snowing heavily here. But don’t worry, I’ll survive, you know.’
Storm also sent a video to a friend showing how the intense snowfall had filled his shoes and backpack, while the wind battered his tent. ‘Tonight, it’s going to get worse. Jesus Christ,’ he said in the video.
And last year, a 17-year-old high school graduate died while out rock climbing in Colorado soon after posting a selfie to his Instagram page.
Carter Christensen of Maple Grove, Minnesota died after falling from the First Flatiron.
The Boulder County Sheriff’s Office said Christensen was free-soloing and climbing alone, without the use of ropes or any kind of climbing gear.
It’s estimated he fell more than 100 feet and suffered ‘massive traumatic injuries’ when he hit the ground.
