A British father of two who had been out drinking with friends was killed early Saturday while sledding down a mountainside in the Italian Alps on a rubber foam mattress, the London Daily Mail reported.

David Monk, 46, of Ware, Herfordshire, crashed into a pole used to support a safety net and died from serious head and chest injuries, the Mail reported.

Two of the three friends he was with were also badly wounded.

Police said the accident happened at the Sauze d'Oulx resort, near Turin, Italy. The men had been out drinking earlier and dislodged a foam rubber crash pad that was serving as a safety net to use it as a makeshift sled.

It gathered speed quickly when Monk was sliding down the mountain on it. He slammed into the fence post where the pad had been and suffered severe head trauma, according to the Mail. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Monk's widow, Anne, said she and their two sons, who are 12 and 15, were "completely devastated."

"I really can't handle this," said Anne Monk, 43. "He was a loving husband and father. He was such a kind man who loved his family very much. It was just a tragic accident. David was just out having a good time."

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