SUNBATHERS were forced to flee a beach after dead rats washed ashore at a popular Brit tourist spot.
Footage filmed by appalled holidaymakers showed the dead rodents cast up near Italy’s famed Amalfi coast.
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The shocking incident was reported on the eastern coast of Salerno in southern Italy, where the seawater has been left contaminated with rat carcasses and rubbish after recent storms.
A clip showed dead rats on the beach at Torrione being dragged ashore by the waves.
Outraged visitors were forced to flee the beach to avoid contact with the waste.
Francesco Emilio Borrelli, MP for the Green–Left Alliance, shared the videos online on 18th August and said: “Dozens of rat carcasses have invaded Torrione beach in Salerno.
“A few days ago there was another similar incident when bathers removed several dead rats from Mercatello beach.”
He added: “I have asked the [local health authority] to urgently investigate the probable causes of what happened as well as to remove the carcasses, which cannot be left to bathers.
“I hope the safety of the many people crowding that coastline these days will be guaranteed with maximum efficiency.”
Regional councillor Aurelio Tommasetti of the Lega party also spoke out.
He said: “We thought we had seen it all, but now even rat carcasses dumped into the sea by streams, as reported in the press and shown in videos that quickly went viral.
“A spectacle that speaks for itself and has sparked the indignant reaction of citizens and tourists, literally forced to flee the beaches to avoid coming across these remains.”
He continued: “This is not only a question of urban decorum but also of hygiene and health concerns.
“Who can guarantee the cleanliness of the sea at Pastena, Torrione and Mercatello in light of these discoveries, some even made by children?”
Tommasetti linked the emergency to the storm that flooded Salerno.
He said: “All this happens just after the storm that flooded and paralysed Salerno, swelling the streams that carried the carcasses into the sea.
“It is too late to talk about clean-up now, action should have been taken earlier.
Torrione Beach in Salerno is a beloved local spot for its otherwise clean, blue waters that some have previously said could rival the Maldives.
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It lies within the city of Salerno, which serves as a gateway to the Amalfi Coast – a popular international tourist spot.
Meanwhile, tourists have been banned from a long stretch of sea on Spain’s Costa Blanca due to an invasion of venomous and bizarre “blue dragons”.
Categorised as a sea slug, the deadly creatures are dubbed “the most beautiful killer in the ocean”.
The mysterious and rarely spotted blue seabeast – also known as the blue angel with wings like a dragon – is just over an inch long.
But it has a sting as powerful as the much larger Portuguese man o’ war – and preys on them too.
The creatures absorb their prey’s venom – concentrating it at the end of their finger-like extremities to ward off attackers.
Although they look like mini Pokemon, the beasts can even turn cannibalistic – sometimes eating each other in captivity.
To protect swimmers on this popular stretch of coastline in Spain, red flags have been put up and lifeguards are voicing warnings with loudhailers.
Reg flags went up on beaches in Guardamar del Segura just north of Torrevieja following the appearance of the blue dragons.
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