Teenage girl dies in car crash after her long hair gets tangled on the steering wheel

Montereale Valcellina, Italy: Caterina Alzetta's locks became tangled after she wound down her window causing her hair to 'fly about' inside the car.

A teenage driver died after a car crash when her long blonde hair got caught in the steering wheel.

Caterina Alzetta, 19, was with her brother Pietro, 21, driving through the Italian town of Montereale Valcellina, when she wound down her window.

But the strong winds caused Caterina's hair to 'fly about' inside the car and get tangled in the steering wheel, according to Pietro, who survived the crash and had to be cut free from the wreckage.

When she tried to pull it free, the car veered into oncoming traffic and hit a car.

The brother and sister were the children of Michelle Alzetta, who is head of the local ambulance rescue emergency service in the northern Italian town of Montereale

He said: "My daughter's hair was thick and long, but tragically her hair got caught in the steering wheel, and as we understand it when she made a sudden movement of the head it pulled on the steering wheel."

The two men, both brothers aged 42 and 47, who were in the other car were also taken to hospital but are expected to recover after the accident on the road between San Martino di Campagna and Montereale.

The funeral of the young woman, who was a popular member of the local community, was attended by hundreds of mourners.