Several Dead As Central Italy Again Rocked By Earthquakes
by Richard D'Ambrosio /
News agencies are reporting that at least “several” people have died in the Abruzzo region of Italy after an earthquake-generated avalanche struck the Hotel Rigopiano, in the ski village of Farindola. The hotel sits on the lower slopes of the Gran Sasso Mountain.
Four powerful quakes greater than a 5.0 on the Richter scale hit the region in less than four hours on Wednesday morning, with the epicenter in Montereale. Tremors were felt as far away as Rome, where the city’s metro was temporarily evacuated and closed.
Successive earthquakes since the summer have left locals rattled. In August, 300 people died in Amatrice, near Montereale, when devastating earthquakes struck the small village. Since then, central Italy has been struck by several earthquakes damaging numerous historic Italian towns.
Avalanche warnings were issued across the region which is popular with day-trippers from Rome and cities on Italy's east coast.