Italy looks for quake survivors
His Majesty Sultan Qaboos sends condolences on 247 deaths
AMATRICE/MUSCAT: His Majesty Sultan Qaboos has condoled with Italy over deaths of 247 people in the earthquake that struck Lazio region, central Italy in a message to Italian President Sergio Mattarella. The death toll could rise higher after rescue teams worked through the night to try to find survivors under the rubble of flattened towns.
The 6.2 magnitude quake struck a cluster of mountain communities 140 km (85 miles) east of Rome early on Wednesday as people slept, destroying hundreds of homes. The provisional death toll has jumped to 247, from the 159 listed on Wednesday, the Civil Protection department said.
Officials said they expected the figure to rise further as the search operation continued. Trucks full of rubble left the area every few minutes, including one in which a dusty doll could be seen lying on top of tonnes of debris. Hundreds of aftershocks have shaken the area since the earthquake.
On Thursday, the sun rose on frightened people who had slept in cars or tents, the earth continuing to tremble under their feet. Two aftershocks registered 5.1 and 5.4 just before dawn.
“I haven’t slept much because I was really afraid,” said 70-year-old Arturo Onesi from the town of Arquata del Tronto, who spent the night in a tent camp for survivors and rescue workers.
The earthquake was powerful enough to be felt in Bologna to the north and Naples to the south, both more than 220 km (135 miles) from the epicentre.
The populations of the four worst-hit towns — Amatrice, Pescara del Tronto, Arquata del Tronto and Accumoli — increase by up to ten-fold in the summer, and many of those killed or missing were visitors. Aerial video taken by drones showed swathes of Amatrice, last year voted one of Italy’s most beautiful historic towns, completely flattened.
A hotel that collapsed in Amatrice, the Hotel Roma, probably had about 70 guests and only seven bodies have been recovered so far.
The owner of the hotel said as many as 30 guests may have been able to escape before the building came down.
About 270 people injured in Wednesday’s quake were hospitalised, the Civil Protection department said.
The populations of the four worst-hit towns increase by up to ten-fold in the summer, and many of those killed or missing were visitors.