CAVEZZO, Italy – An earthquake killed at least 15 people in northern Italy on Tuesday, damaging buildings and spreading panic among thousands of residents still living in tents after a tremor in the same region destroyed their homes just over a week ago.
Officials said several people were trapped under the rubble of houses and warehouses in the Emilia-Romagna region, where several building sites and workshops had just reopened after the previous quake on May 20.
Civil protection officials said 15 people were confirmed dead. Seven people were killed in the May 20 quake that, like Tuesday’s, had its epicentre not far from the city of Modena.
Italian television showed buildings shaking and collapsing, ambulances racing across towns and rescue workers battling to remove rubble.
Workshops and factories outside Cavezzo, a village about 30 km (20 miles) from Modena, suffered considerable damage, a Reuters reporter said.
Sports car maker Ferrari and motorcycle firm Ducati closed their plants in the region for safety reasons.
“The situation is one of great fear and uncertainty,” said Salvatore Iannizzotto, provincial head for the Modena police.
That quake, which registered magnitude 6, destroyed hundreds of buildings, including ancient churches and castles, and forced more than 7,000 people to sleep outdoors in tents.
It also hit production of some of the area's most internationally famous produce, including Parmigiano Reggiano cheese. Farmers estimated the damage to agriculture in one of Italy's most fertile zones at more than 200 million euros.
On Tuesday, officials said operations to rescue people from the rubble had been hampered by disruption to the mobile phone network.
"The town has been largely damaged. There are people under the rubble, we don't know how many," a police officer from Cavezzo told Reuters.
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 U.S. Geological Survey said the epicentre of Tuesday's quake was less than 30 km (19 miles) from Modena, not far from where the quake hit just over a week ago.
A 3.8 magnitude earthquake was also felt through western Bulgaria on Tuesday, causing no casualties or serious damage, the National Geophysical Institute said.
The tremor had its epicentre near the town of Pernik, shaking buildings and causing residents to rush into the streets.
A 5.6 magnitude eartquake shook Bulgaria last Tuesday, centered about 25 km west of the capital Sofia. Damage was estimated at more than 20 million levs ($12.82 million).
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