A state funeral service was underway Saturday in Italy to commemorate dozens of people killed in Genoa’s bridge disaster, as some outraged relatives shunned official ceremonies and rescuers pulled more bodies from the wreckage. Local media reported a family of three had been discovered, including a nine-year-old girl, adding to the death toll of 38. The populist government has blamed the operator of the viaduct for the collapse and threatened to strip the firm of its contracts. ‘Farce of a funeral’But more than half of the families of the victims refused to take part, some preferring a more intimate funeral, while others announced a boycott. Autostrade, which operates and maintains nearly half of Italy’s motorways, estimates it will take five months to rebuild the bridge.

Source: The Guardian August 18, 2018 10:52 UTC