'Apocalyptic Scenes' After Heart of Italy Rocked by Quake

Amatrice, Pescara del Tronto, Accumoli devastated
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Aug 24, 2016 5:47 AM CDT
Updated Aug 24, 2016 6:17 AM CDT
'The Town Isn't Here Anymore': Heart of Italy Hit by Quake
A post office is engulfed by rubbles in Arcuata del Tronto, central Italy, where a 6.1 earthquake struck just after 3:30 a.m., Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2016.   (Sandro Perozzi)

Asked if there were any dead, the mayor of the central Italian town of Amatrice, hit hard by an overnight quake, said, "Look there are houses that aren't here anymore. ... the town isn't here anymore." The quake—being reported variously as between magnitude 6.0 and 6.2—struck shortly after 3:30am, collapsing homes on top of residents as they slept, and was followed by dozens of aftershocks, reports the AP. Along with Amatrice, which sits 80 miles northeast of Rome, Pescara del Tronto and Accumoli were among the hardest-hit towns; at least 73 people are dead, per AP. Reuters reports those towns are located in the "mountainous heart of the country," which makes for a more complicated rescue effort.

ANSA quotes civil protection authorities as calling Wednesday's quake "comparable in intensity" to the 2009 L'Aquila earthquake that took 300 lives, and witnesses are describing "apocalyptic scenes." A man whose home collapsed in Via Costanzo Angelini tells ANSA, "Ten seconds were enough to destroy everything. I can remember the L'Aquila earthquake, it lasted longer. Here everything happened in a flash." The center of Amatrice was devastated, reports the AP, with entire buildings razed and the air thick with dust and smelling strongly of gas. "It was one of the most beautiful towns of Italy and now there's nothing left," said one woman, too distraught to give her name. "I don't know what we'll do." (More earthquake stories.)

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'The Town Isn't Here Anymore': Heart of Italy Hit by Quake
Rescuers search a crumbled building in Arcuata del Tronto, central Italy, where a 6.1 earthquake struck just after 3:30 a.m., Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2016.   (Sandro Perozzi)
'The Town Isn't Here Anymore': Heart of Italy Hit by Quake
A body is carried away as a car is covered in rubble after an earthquake, in Amatrice, central Italy, Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2016.   (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
'The Town Isn't Here Anymore': Heart of Italy Hit by Quake
Rescuers search for survivors through rubble after an earthquake, in Accumoli, central Italy, Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2016.   (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
'The Town Isn't Here Anymore': Heart of Italy Hit by Quake
Rescuers work in Amatrice, central Italy, Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2016.   (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
'The Town Isn't Here Anymore': Heart of Italy Hit by Quake
A woman is comforted as she walks through rubble after an earthquake, in Amatrice, central Italy, Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2016.   (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
'The Town Isn't Here Anymore': Heart of Italy Hit by Quake
A woman holds a child as they stand in the street following an earthquake, in Amatrice, Italy, Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2016. The magnitude 6 quake struck at 3:36 a.m. (0136 GMT) and was felt across a broad swath of central Italy, including Rome where residents of the capital felt a long swaying followed...   (Massimo Percossi/ANSA via AP)
'The Town Isn't Here Anymore': Heart of Italy Hit by Quake
A nun checks her mobile phone as she lies near a ladder following an earthquake in Amatrice Italy, Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2016.   (Massimo Percossi/ANSA via AP)
'The Town Isn't Here Anymore': Heart of Italy Hit by Quake
Rescuers search for survivors amidst collapsed buildings following an earthquake, in Pescara del Tronto, Italy, Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2016.   (Cristiano Chiodi/ANSA via AP)
'The Town Isn't Here Anymore': Heart of Italy Hit by Quake
A view of the collapsed buildings of the town of Pescara del Tronto, Italy, after an earthquake, Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2016.   (Cristiano Chiodi/ANSA via AP)