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Up to 300 bridges, viaducts and tunnels in Italy are at risk of structural failure, experts warned, as the death toll from the collapse of a bridge in Genoa rose to 39, including three children.

There were fears that the number of fatalities could rise further.

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Matteo Salvini, Italy’s interior minister, said it was hard to tell how many people were still unaccounted for simply because they were on vacation or “under the rubble”.

Rescuers were continuing to search the rubble but hopes were fading of finding anyone alive.

“We are no longer hearing any audible signs of life, but we are not going to stop searching,” said Luciano Roncalli, a fire service officer. “Due to the huge slabs of cement there is still a chance of surviving in a big void inside the rubble, so just because we cannot hear anything doesn’t mean there is no hope.”

Richard Bordoni, a search and rescue specialist, said: “We won’t stop until we’ve removed every bit of cement.”