Overview
- Rescuers widened searches from the Trigno river to the Adriatic Sea after finding the license plate and a bumper from the missing man’s Fiat Bravo, but neither the car nor the driver has been located.
- Prosecutors in Larino opened an inquiry for negligent collapse and said manslaughter will be pursued if a death is confirmed, while ANAS, Italy’s national roads agency, reported two vehicles entered the closed stretch in violation of the ban.
- The SS16 Adriatica bridge at the Abruzzo–Molise border collapsed Thursday during extreme flooding, and relatives say 53-year-old Domenico Racanati lost contact with his wife by phone at the moment of the failure.
- Firefighters report about 1,800 rescue operations since March 31 across Abruzzo, Puglia, and Molise, with hundreds of personnel, divers, aircraft, and coast guard units deployed as evacuations and road closures continue.
- Weather has eased, yet authorities still flag landslides, avalanche risk, and damaged links, and the government has waived A14 tolls near the area and signaled a special commissioner to speed bridge reconstruction.