BOLZANO – A British woman has died after slipping and falling 100 ft while hiking in the Dolomites, rescue services have confirmed, in what is the second British tragedy of the week in northern Italy.

 The woman, who has been named as 55-year-old teacher Louise Atkinson, was on holiday from Ripon, Yorkshire with her 58-year-old partner John Dickinson.

 Atkinson was pronounced dead at the scene on Sunday shortly after 2 p.m. after reportedly taking a wrong turn on the Santner hiking trail leading to a section with no protective rope.

 The section they found themselves in was reportedly designed for experienced climbers with specific equipment with a series of ladders that lead to the peak of the 2700m Catinaccio mountain.

 A source from the mountain rescue team confirmed that “The couple, who were not married, were on a hike on Sunday when they took a wrong turning and ended up on a more challenging route. It involved a Via Ferrata cableway, and they did not have the correct equipment so when they realised it was harder, they turned back.

 “On the way down and just before re-joining the correct route the British lady slipped and fell around 35 metres. She suffered fatal injuries and was already deceased by the time the helicopter arrived at the scene.

 “Her partner and others who had seen what happened raised the alarm but there was nothing that could be done.”

 It comes as the second British fatality of the week after a man drowned on Friday in Lake Garda after trying to rescue his son

 51-year-old Aran Chada has rented a boat with his family in the town of Limone when he saw that his son Roman was struggling to swim. Chada then disappeared under the water and search efforts are still underway to recover his body after he did not resurface.

 The diving unit of the Genoa Coast Guard has joined the search effort alongside a robot submarine to assist the operation.

jd