Second big quake hits northern Italy, 15 dead
UPDATED @ 09:32:34 PM 29-05-2012
A Carabinieri paramilitary officer stands near a damaged car after a strong aftershock struck Finale Emilia, Italy in this file photo of May 20, 2012. A second big quake hit northern Italy on May 29, 2012 killing at least 10 people. – Reuters picMILAN, May 29 – A strong earthquake struck northern Italy today, killing at least fifteen people and spreading panic among residents still living in tents after a tremor shook the region just over a week ago, destroying their homes.
Italian news agencies said six people were confirmed dead and many people were injured.
“The situation is very serious, some people are stuck under the rubble,” Alberto Silvestri, the mayor of the San Felice sul Panaro told television channel SkyTG24.
The 5.8-magnitude quake struck near Modena and was felt across much of northern and central Italy.
On May 20, a magnitude 6 earthquake killed seven people and destroyed hundreds of buildings, including ancient churches and castles, and forced thousands of people to sleep outdoors in tents.
Italian media said the latest earthquake caused more buildings to collapse.
Train services around Bologna, near Modena, were disrupted, media said, and schools and other public buildings had been evacuated as far south as Florence.
“We felt a very strong tremor,” said Raffaella Besola, a resident of Bologna.
The US Geological Survey said the epicentre of today’s 5.8 magnitude earthquake, which struck at a depth of 9.6 km, was less than 30 km from Modena, not far from where the quake hit just over a week ago.
Messages posted on Twitter and other social media suggested the tremor was felt across northern Italy. – Reuters
