A 29-year-old American tourist has died after being hit by lightning while hiking on Mount Etna in Sicily.

The man was struck on Sunday as a severe thunderstorm swept across the volcano.

He was rushed to a hospital in Catania by a firefighter helicopter but was pronounced dead. His identity has not yet been made public.

An emergency call came in shortly before 8 pm. He had been in the isolated Rocca Capra area of the active volcano, in the Valle del Bove, around 1,400 metres above sea level.

According to preliminary information from authorities, the man is believed to have been on his own and may have been in an area closed to the public or…

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