At least 21 people including children have died in Central Italy after a magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck 76 kilometre, Southeast of the city of Perugia.
In Rome, reports say some buildings shook for 20 seconds and a family of four were found under rubble in the town of Accumoli. Several people remain trapped under the rubble.
“One person was pulled out of the rubble during the night,” said Mayor of Accumoli, Stefano Petrucci.
“There is a family of four under a collapsed house and sadly there are two small children among them.”
Some of the worst damage was in the town of Amatrice, where several people died and rescue efforts were under way to find survivors.
“The roads in and out of town are cut off. Half the town is gone. There are people under the rubble. There’s been a landslide and a bridge might collapse,” Mayor of Amatruice, Sergio Perozzi told BBC.
Italy’s civil protection has described the earthquake as “severe” and the united states geological survey also predicted that the damage could be significant, based on data from previous quakes.
In 2009, a 6.3-magnitude earthquake in the Aquila region, which was also felt in the Italian capital, left more than 300 dead.