dead birds
© Roma Today
Hundreds of dead birds covered a central Rome street in the aftermath of last night's fireworks for New Year.

The birds, believed to be starlings, were found at the Termini train station end of Via Cavour by a motorist who posted footage of the disturbing scene on YouTube.

The disorientated birds, startled by the explosions, are thought to have died after flying into windows and high voltage electricity cables just after midnight.

The incident occurred amid a New Year firework ban which was completely ignored, as in previous years, leading to numerous cases of dogs running away from their homes in fear.