The Kansas man was struck by lightning while in an exposed area above the tree line on Mount Etna, firefighters said
Credit: Salvatore Allegra/Anadolu/Getty
NEED TO KNOW
- An American tourist died after being struck by lightning while hiking Mount Etna on Sunday, Aug. 16
- While the man was rushed to a local hospital in Italy, he was later pronounced dead
- Fire officials later shared that the man was found alone in an area that was off-limits to hikers
An American tourist died after being struck by lightning while hiking in a restricted area of an active volcano in Italy.
Italian firefighters shared that a man from Kansas was struck by lightning on Sunday, Aug. 16, while in an exposed area above the tree line on Mount Etna, according to the Associated Press, ANSA and local outlet Catania Today.
Although the tourist, whose identity has not been released, was rushed to Catania’s Cannizzaro Hospital to receive medical treatment, he was pronounced dead around 9:10 p.m., reported Catania Today.
Local fire officials said that the hiker was found alone in an area known as Valle del Bove, which was off-limits to hikers, according to The New York Times and ANSA.
Credit: Giuseppe Distefano/Etna Walk/AFP/Getty
At the time of the lightning strike, several areas of the volcano were closed due to an unusually heavy amount of volcanic activity, reported the Associated Press.
Hours earlier, the international airport in Catania announced that it would be imposing limits on the number of flights arriving due to the amount of ash being released by Mount Etna.
“Due to Etna’s eruptive activity and the associated release of volcanic ash into the atmosphere, the closure of Sector B1 has been extended,” the airport stated in a notice. “Arriving flights are partially limited to 10 aircraft per hour until 12:00 PM tomorrow, Tuesday 18 August.”
Credit: Salvatore Allegra/Anadolu/Getty
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In addition to Mount Etna’s heightened period of eruptive activity, Italian health authorities said that lightning strikes are particularly common in July and August, with an average of around 1.6 million lightning strikes in the country per year.
A recent study published by the American Meteorological Society also found that around 89 people were killed by lightning strikes in the country from 2001 to 2020.
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