The undertaker is left lying in the snow with the body – mourners wait in vain

After a tragic accident on Italy's Lake Como, a 56-year-old woman was to be buried in Milan. But the coffin never arrived.

Bergamo – At a funeral but the coffin is missing? Mourners had this unpleasant experience in a church on the border with Milan. The reason for this is that the undertaker was left lying in the snow with the body. According to media reports, he was found ten kilometers from the hearse with hypothermia on a mountain east of the Alps.

The deceased was a 56-year-old woman. At the beginning of 2024, her car accidentally rolled over the slope from a parking lot and crashed into Lake Como in Italy. The two other occupants – the husband and another relative – survived with serious injuries. They are currently still in the hospital.

Undertaker almost freezes to death while mourners wait

After the tragic accident, the undertaker was supposed to take the body in the coffin to the funeral in Milan. But things turned out differently: according to the Italian news portal Corriere della Sera got lost this one because of the bad weather between Valtellina and Val Brembana. The 37-year-old driver did not take the motorway from Lake Como to Milan, but is said to have driven through the Dordona Pass through the Valtellina mountains. The gravel road is usually closed in winter as it is difficult to drive even in summer. The vehicle finally failed at an altitude of around 2,000 meters.

Since the undertaker had no cell phone reception, he decided to get out and seek help. In desperation, he trudged through the snow for almost ten kilometers until he reached a hut, like this Corriere della Sera. He left the body behind – to the annoyance of some relatives. From there, the driver was able to alert the mountain rescue service, which arrived with snowmobiles. The emergency services found the man with severe hypothermia. After he was brought to the valley, he was transported to the hospital. His condition is stable. The body was subsequently handed over to the relatives.

Tgcom24 reports that the undertaker was not lost. Instead, he took this route to visit his parents on the way to Milan. They then alerted the emergency services after their son had not arrived and could no longer be reached, according to the Italian online news service.

Undertaker is left lying in the snow with his body – mourners upset

Family and friends of the 56-year-old deceased reacted with incomprehension. “The church was full, but the coffin never arrived,” one of the relatives complained to the news portal Corriere della Sera. “It is absurd not to have been informed.” The funeral in Milan has been postponed for the time being due to the incident.

Lake Como is one of the most popular travel destinations in the region, also among holidaymakers from Germany. The Italian lake is considered particularly glamorous, with numerous villas adorning the shore. Also megastar George Clooney still owns a property there. Curious: A few days after the accident, another accident occurred at the same location: on January 6th, two people fell into Lake Como – also by car – and died. How the accident occurred has not yet been clarified. (cln)