Toll climbs after earthquake hits central Italy

[The Lawspeaker]

Toll climbs after earthquake hits central Italy



An Aquila resident searches for relatives through streets almost blocked by rubble. Photo: Reuters

Fifty people are dead and many more are missing after a powerful earthquake tore through central Italy today, devastating mountain towns.

Interior Minister Roberto Moroni told reporters at the scene there were 50 dead. More than 50,000 people have been evacuated and thousands are homeless in the central Abruzzo region. Emergency services scrambled to find victims trapped under thousands of collapsed homes and buildings and warned the toll would rise significantly.

The medieval mountain city of L'Aquila, about 100 kilometres north of Rome, bore the brunt of the quake, which struck just after 3.30am (11.30am AEST).

Sirens blared across the city as rescue workers raced to find people in the rubble. Thousands of the city's 60,000 residents fled into the streets fearing aftershocks.

Hundreds, some in shock and others sobbing, waited outside L'Aquila's main hospital for treatment, ANSA news agency reported. Doctors treated people in the open air as only one operating room was functioning, the agency said. Hospitals in nearby cities were receiving injured by helicopter.

The quake registered 5.8 on the richter scale, according to the national geophysical institute. The US Geological Survey put the magnitude at 6.3.
The epicentre was beneath L'Aquila but many surrounding villages are reported to have been razed and fatalities have been confirmed in other towns, including Avezzano.

Residents have described terrifying rumbles and several smaller shocks before the largest hit at 3.32am.
Entire apartment buildings, houses, a student dormitory and the cupolas of major churches have collapsed and emergency services are struggling with the spread of the damage. The Duke of Abruzzi Hotel has been razed and initial estimates suggest up to 15,000 buildngs, small and large, are damaged.

Urgent calls for blood donations have been sent throughout Italy and to other regions while the head of Civil Protection, Guido Bertolaso, who has been charged with overseeing the emergency said the tragedy was unprecedented and its magnitude echoed the scenes in the wake of the earthquake in Umbria.

Il Centro journalist, Vittorio Perfetto, described fleeing his home in the centre of L'Aquila: "We went out, everything was collapsing, it was just rubble, full of rubble. It was so dramatic, we heard it coming, then the shocks, one was 3.2 but then this morning we felt the massive one ... everything moved, the furniture, the ceiling.''
Residents said the shock lasted 20-30 seconds.

Matthew Peacock, who lives with his wife and child in the Umbrian town of Amelia told Britain's Sky television: "It felt like the house was being shaken from the rooftop - my bed was banging against the wall and you could hear this creaking.

"I rushed across the hallway to my son, who's five, grabbed him and stood underneath the doorway. The shaking went on for 20 seconds or so.''
He went on: "The earth really felt like jelly underneath. Dogs outside were making an incredible racket.''

Another Briton living in Monte San Marino, a small town in the Apennine mountain range 100km to the north east of L'Aquila - said he also woke up to find the house shaking.

Barry Raven told Sky News: "It continued to shake for about 30 seconds.
"When you felt it you were thinking 'Is this the beginning or is this the end?'.''


Source: TheAge.com.au (link contains a video)

[The Lawspeaker]

According to the Dutch news agency NOS the number of deaths have risen to 92.

[The Lawspeaker]

According to the Dutch news agency NOS and Italian Prime Minister Berlusconi the number of deaths have risen to 150.....

This is horrible...

I'll translate:

Berlusconi: 150 deaths after earthquake.

Prime Minister Berlusconi has reported that some 150 people have died because of the earthquake in Italy.

Around 1500 have been injured and tens of thousands of Italians will have to get through the night staying in encampments.

L'Aquila
The earthquake took place at around just passed half past three. The shock measured around 6.3 on the Richter Scale. The epicenter was close to the medieval town of L'Aquila, the capital of the Abruzzo- region. L'Aquila is located around 85 kilometers north-east of Rome and the shock was felt there as well.

Collapsed
In the historical center of L'Aquila have thousands of buildings been either damaged or collapsed. According to the Italian media people ran into the streets in panic. Also the town of Fossa has been hit. Around 50.000 Italians have been made homeless. The authorities are renting pensions and are building encampments to provide for the victims. Many people are leaving the area due to fear that buildings will collapse due to aftershocks.

State of Emergency
In L'Aquila and surrounding villages a state of emergency has been declared. The army is helping looking for survivors underneath the rubble of the collapsed buildings. Around 40 people are still missing. The regional hospital of L'Aquila has also been hit. Many wounded have to be treated outside- and a field hospital has been provided to serve them.
Prime Minister Berlusconi will later today visit the disaster zone. He has cancelled his planned trip to Moscow.

The earthquake was one of the most powerful in Italy in recent years. There were also several powerful aftershocks. According to Italian media, investigators had been warning last week for earthquakes.
During the last two days several mild shocks had already been felt.

The provided translation is as good as I could get it now. I am too busy to give it some proper attention and care.

[Birka]

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L6566682.htm

This scientist predicted this 1 week ago, but the mayor suppressed the information.

[Vulpix]

Sad, and this is infuriating:

Enzo Boschi said the real problem for Italy was a long-standing failure to take proper precautions despite a history of tragic quakes. "We have earthquakes but then we forget and do nothing. It's not in our culture to take precautions or build in an appropriate way in areas where there could be strong earthquakes," he said.

[Absinthe]

This is a shocking photo report - the captions are in greek but you get the picture (literally)...

It's not in our culture to take precautions or build in an appropriate way in areas where there could be strong earthquakes"

Madness? This is SE! Forget everything you've known as common sense and reason. This is the twilight zone...

[Æmeric]

The 1994 Northridge Earthquake registered 6.7 but ground acceleration (shaking) was one of the worst ever recorded in the US - movement was generally up-down rather then sideways. The epeicenter was in the densely populated San Fernando Valley (over 1 million) & yet the death toll was 57. The quake struck in the early morning while most people were still asleep, keeping the dealth toll down.

The World Series Quake was 6.9 (saw it live on TV) & killed 63 despite being in the densely populated San Francisco Bay metropolis. It goes to show that Californians are good at earthquake preparation, though that may not be the case in the future with the Mexicans taking over.