Young German woman is 7th victim of drunken driver in Italy

BERLIN — A young German woman died in a hospital Monday, the seventh person killed after a drunken driver speeding on an Alpine road in northern Italy plowed into German skiers on vacation, police said.

The accident occurred early Sunday in the village of Valle Aurina, northeast of Bolzano in Italy’s Alto Adige region, as the Germans gathered near their tour bus. They were between ages of 20 and 25.

Germany’s dpa news agency reported the woman was one of two who had been airlifted to a hospital in nearby Austria in critical condition, Bolzano police said. Italy’s ANSA news agency identified her as a 21-year-old who died at the Innsbruck University Clinic.

Police on Sunday said six people died at the scene and 11 were injured. There were no immediate details Monday on the conditions of the others.

The 27-year-old local man who was driving the car was taken to an Italian hospital after the accident but was soon released and taken to prison. He faces a possible 18-year sentence if convicted.

Italian news reports said the driver’s blood alcohol level was nearly four times the legal limit and that he slammed into the tourists as they were getting off their bus and returning home after an evening out. His attorney told dpa he did not think his client was so intoxicated.