AdA U.S. tourist from Italy fell into Mount Vesuvius, an active volcano in Italy, after trying to snap a selfie.
Authorities say the 23-year-old man from Maryland – Philip Carroll – was hiking with his family when he fell inside the crater of Mount Vesuvius.
Carroll allegedly veered off the trail into an area that was restricted and closed to tourists. When they reached the rim of the Volcano, Carroll stopped to snap a selfie, lost the grip of his cell phone and dropped it inside the crater.
As he was trying to recover his phone, he fell several meters into the 4,203-foot volcano, before being saved by nearby park officials. Four guides dropped a rope into the volcano about 50 feet to rescue Carroll, who suffered minor injuries to his arms, legs and back.
Paolo Cappelli, president of the Presidio Permanente Vesuvio base said that if Carroll kept falling, he would have plunged nearly 1,000 feet.
Carroll was taken into custody by local police, however it is unclear whether or not he will face charges.
Mount Vesuvius is an active volcano that last erupted in 1944, according to the park’s website.
This is the same volcano that buried the city of Pompeii in 79 AD.
