ANOTHER EARTHQUAKE STRIKES ITALY!

Associated Press ... breaking on the wire | October 31, 2002 | Alessandra Rizzo

[NYer]

ROME (AP) _ A strong earthquake rocked central and southern Italy on Thursday, trapping about 50 children in a school after the building's roof collapsed. It was not immediately clear if the children, reportedly between the ages of 3 and 6 years old, were injured. The ANSA news agency quoted police as saying none were dead.

ANSA and the AGI agency said firefighters rushed to the scene and pulled five children out of the rubble alive, but ANSA later said none had been rescued. The quake had a 5.4 magnitude, said Marco Ludovici, an official with the Civil Defense department in Rome.

The school is located in San Giuliano di Puglia, near the quake's epicenter in Campobasso, in the Apennine mountain region about 50 miles northeast of Naples. Phone lines in the region were down. Schools were evacuated in at least three towns in the Abruzzo region, and in the city of Isernia, about 15 miles from Campobasso, ANSA said.

Panicked residents rushed into the streets when the quake struck at 11:33 a.m., leaving gaping cracks in walls and ceilings missing huge chunks of plaster. An aftershock, which hit at the same epicenter at 12:56 p.m., had a 2.9 magnitude, civil defense officials said.

Also Thursday, a 3.7 magnitude quake hit Mount Etna, the Sicilian volcano which began erupting Sunday. No damage was reported.

The National Institute of Geophysics and Vulcanology in Rome said the quake in central Italy and the one shaking Etna did not appear to be connected. In 1980 an earthquake in the area of Naples killed 2,570 people and left 30,000 homeless in the southern Campania and Basilicata regions.

AP-ES-10-31-02 0910EST

[NYer]

I spent many years visiting this part of Italy. It is a beautiful and rustic area and the locals are, for the most part, farmers and merchants.

Please pray for these children and their teachers.

[Lurking2Long]

Etna, I'm not glad I met ya!

[Eowyn-of-Rohan]

Wonder why this isn't on the NEIC website yet???

[mewzilla]

We spent some time south of Salerno. Nice country and even nicer people. They're in our prayers.

[Dallas]

By Associated Press

October 31, 2002, 9:42 AM EST

ROME -- Bodies of at least three children pulled from wreckage of school hit by quake, firefighters say.

Copyright © 2002, The Associated Press

[Ramius]

This says it was a 5.4 and CNN was reporting a 5.3. From the footage showing the collapsed school and the large cracks in the buildings it sure looks like more than a 5.x quake would do. It looks pretty bad.

[trebb]

I spent 2-1/2 years stationed in southern Italy (20 miles from Brindisi) and loved every second of it. Traveled up through the earthquake areas several times and ir is every bit as beautiful. Lots of good people too.

[Desdemona]

This is not good. Children are so cherished in Italy. And the people are so nice...They're definitely in my prayers.

[cajungirl]

Italy is my favorite place in the world after home. This is terrible.

[NYer]

Traveled up through the earthquake areas several times and ir is every bit as beautiful. Lots of good people too.

.... and great food!! Nothing like a good "zuppa di pesce" in any one of the seaside towns along the Adriatic.

[blam]

"We spent some time south of Salerno. Nice country and even nicer people. They're in our prayers."

San Remo in the early 60's was a dream. I hear it's been 'found' now though.

[blam]

"This kind of stuff over there is indeed ominous, as it might not just be shifting plates but rather magma flow. Hopefully it will not be anything else, but some day there will be a disaster of incredible proportion."

Yup. You are so right. Thera/Santorini/Akatori comes to mind, it blew in 1628BC and provided the fireworks for the Exodus(ahem), IMO.

[Deguello]

"3.7 magnitude quake hit Mount Etna, the Sicilian volcano which began erupting Sunday. No damage was reported."

Noting that the volcano was not damaged.

[mewzilla]

We spent three months in 86. Mr. Mew was over on business. We were near the town of Battipaglia. The Roman ruins of Paestum weren't far from where we were staying. We got to Pompeii two or three times. We couldn't believe the construction near Vesuvio. When we asked folks about it we were told that they were optimists and took living in the shadow of the volcano in stride.

[ELS]

Attenzione!

[Alas Babylon!]

Hey, I was at San Vito from 1991-1993. Were you there?