Mother of two dies in bizarre accident when her clothes get caught in a cable car over an Italian valley

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A mother of two children died in a bizarre accident in which she fell hundreds of meters and died in front of her husband and children.

Margerita Lega was on holiday in Calasca Castiglione in the Anzasca Valley in the Italian Alps when her clothes got caught in a cable car at 11am on Thursday.

The 41-year-old from Trentino was loading luggage onto a small Telefrica machine – a cable car used to transport luggage and objects rather than people – when she was caught.

She was pulled over a cliff when the transport was suddenly switched on, according to the Daily mail.

Ms. Lega was able to hold on for a few moments, but then she lost her footing and fell 150 meters (492 feet) to her death.

The family was reportedly trying to reach a cabin on a mountain in the region. Her husband and two children – a six-year-old and a nine-year-old – were present at the time and are believed to have witnessed the whole ordeal. They are currently being cared for while the incident is investigated by police.

An extensive rescue operation was launched to find Ms Lega, with technicians from the Piedmont Alpine and Speleological Rescue Team descending from a helicopter and making the rest of the discovery over land, according to the Italian publication. The Republic.

Finding her body required rope maneuvers to overcome the rocky and uneven terrain. Health workers could do nothing for Ms Lega upon arrival other than confirm her death. Rescue workers from the Guardia di Finanza arrived and her body was then recovered by a fire service helicopter.

Silvia Tipaldi, mayor of Calasca Castiglione, expressed her condolences to the family and said a full investigation was being carried out.

“We are shocked. We are waiting for the judge’s inspection of the power plant to get more information about what has unfortunately turned out to be a tragedy,” she said.

She added that “the documentation relating to the cable car was duly submitted to the municipality” and said that authorities currently believe that “the tragedy was an accident”.

Ms Lega’s family is “in shock” and the local government has offered them support.