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Rescuers recover fourth body from Italian hydroelectric plant blast

By Thomson Reuters Apr 11, 2024 | 6:58 AM

MILAN (Reuters) – Italian rescuers have found the body of one of four workers who were still missing following Tuesday’s underground explosion at a hydroelectric plant near Bologna, the fire brigade said, bringing the death toll from the accident to at least four.

Three corpses were found shortly after the fire and explosion rocked the plant owned by Enel Green Power, part of Enel Group, on the shores of the artificial Lake Suviana.

“The (fourth) body has been found by divers at level -9. The last three missing people have not yet been located,” a fire brigade spokesperson said on Thursday, as divers continued to search in very difficult conditions.

The deaths compounded already widespread concerns expressed by trade unions about workplace safety in Italy, after a series of fatal accidents in factories and building sites.

Enel staff are striking for eight hours over the issue on Thursday, while workers in other sectors are holding a previously planned four-hour stoppage across the country.

(Reporting by Claudia Cristoferi and Giancarlo Navach, editing by Gavin Jones)