Car Plows Into German Tourists in Northern Italy, 6 Dead

ROME — A car plowed into a group of young German tourists in northern Italy early Sunday, killing six people and injuring 11, Italian fire officials said.

The deadly crash occurred in a village near Valle Aurina, near Bolzano in the South Tyrol region, shortly after 1 a.m. as the Germans were gathering to board their bus.

The Lutago volunteer fire service said in a Facebook post that the six dead had been killed at the scene. The injured were taken to several nearby hospitals.

The news channel Sky TG24 quoted the Italian police as saying that the driver was believed to be from the area and had a high alcohol blood content.

The regions president, Arno Kompatscher, told a news conference that the victims were part of a group of young Germans in the region on vacation.

South Tyrol, or Alto Adige — a largely German-speaking autonomous region of northern Italy, with ski resorts in the Dolomites mountain range and quaint villages around Bolzano — is popular with German tourists. The accident occurred on the final long weekend of the Christmas and New Year’s holiday in Italy, which will be capped by Epiphany on Monday.