Cable Car Fall Near Lake Maggiore Leaves at Least 8 Dead

At least eight people have died after a cable car fell near Lake Maggiore in northern Italy, according to local media reports.

Local newspaper Corriere della Sera reports that 11 people were on board the car, which has a maximum capacity of 40. Two children had been taken to a hospital in Turin by air ambulance, it added.

The paper said that the fall was caused by a rope failure.

It is understood that the car would likely have been transporting people from Stresa, a resort town in the Piedmont region, to a mountain at about 1,500 meters above sea level.

The crash was confirmed by the Vigili del Fuoco, Italy's agency for fire and rescue services, which tweeted a photograph showing the crash site.

"A cabin of the cable car connecting Stresa-Alpino-Mottarone fell. There are people dead, the toll is provisional," it captioned the picture.

Alpine rescue and air helicopter emergency services are in attendance.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated.