Hail the size of oranges has injured 18 people in an Italian Adriatic city, while a blaze in Sicily forced beach-goers to flee.

Italian news agency ANSA quoted hospital officials in Pescara as saying that the hailstorm caused cuts and bruises, especially on the head.

Elsewhere in south-central Italy, hail in Venafro broke windows and windshields.

On the outskirts of San Vito Lo Capo, a Sicilian beach town, it was reported that 750 holidaymakers were able to return to their resort after wind-whipped flames had forced their evacuation by sea overnight.

In other bad weather in Italy, a tornado swept through the area of Milano Marittima, knocking down some 200 century-old pine trees in the popular Adriatic Sea resort.

Source: www.breakingnews.ie