NORCIA: Italy’s most powerful earthquake in 36 years struck the country’s mountainous centre Sunday, panicking shell-shocked residents for the third time in two months and flattening a world famous 600-year-old basilica.
Remarkably, there were no reports of anyone dying as a result of the 6.6-magnitude quake but more than 3,000 people were left temporarily homeless, the national civil protection agency said.
“We can confirm that we have no information on victims,” said agency head Fabrizio Curcio, adding that 20 people had been injured, relatively lightly.
However “many buildings are in a critical state in historic centres and there are problems with electricity and water supplies,” Curcio told reporters.
The quake struck at 7:40 am (0640 GMT) near Norcia in the region of Umbria, unleashing a shock felt in the capital Rome and even in Venice, 300 kilometres (200 miles) away.
Norcia residents were barred from returning to their homes on safety grounds and, as night fell, hundreds were being transported by bus to nearby Lake Trasimeno, where temporary accommodation in hotels and gymnasiums had been arranged.
It was Italy’s biggest quake since a 6.9-magnitude one struck the south of the country in 1980, leaving 3,000 people dead.
More than 50 powerful aftershocks rumbled throughout the day, some 15 of them between magnitude 4 and 5.
Prime Minister Matteo Renzi reiterated a government pledge to rebuild every damaged house and ensure that dozens of remote communities do not become ghost towns.
“Fatigue must not turn into resignation” he urged, during a short press conference in Rome, adding that an extraordinary cabinet meeting on Monday would discuss the quake situation.
