Skip to main content

More bodies located beneath rubble in Italy quake zone

Rescuers bringing out a man from the rubble in Italy after the earthquake

Rescuers bringing out a man from the rubble in Italy after the earthquake

Rescuers believe they have located more bodies in the ruined town of Amatrice, five days after a devastating earthquake struck central Italy, killing at least 290 people.

Residents of the hill town said up to 10 people were still missing and emergency services said they might have located three corpses in Amatrice’s Hotel Roma, which, like much of the historic center, was wrecked by Wednesday’s quake.

“I am certain there is one more person (in the hotel), because it is my uncle,” said Deputy Mayor Gianluca Carloni.

“It is absolutely vital to finish as soon as possible this initial (search) phase to make sure that there are no more bodies under the rubble,” he said.

The Civil Protection Department lowered the official death toll on Sunday to 290 from a previously given 291.

A number of foreigners were among the dead, including 11 Romanians, the foreign ministry in Bucharest said.

Many Romanians work in Italy and Bucharest said 14 of its nationals were still unaccounted for.

Museums across Italy will donate proceeds from Sunday’s ticket sales to help the rebuilding effort and soccer teams will hold a minute’s silence before their weekend matches out of respect for the victims.

Pope Francis led prayers for the dead in his weekly address in Rome, saying he wanted to go to the earthquake zone to bring comfort to the survivors.

“Dear brothers and sisters, as soon as it is possible, I hope to come and visit you,” he said.

Italy has promised to rebuild the shattered communities and has said it will learn from the mistakes of the reconstruction following a similar earthquake in the nearby city of L’Aquila in 2009, where much of the center is still out of bounds.

“The government isn’t going to tell you what should be done. You will decide what needs doing,” Prime Minister Matteo Renzi told relatives of the dead on Saturday at a state funeral for 35 of the victims.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Houthis Claim Attack on Central Israel in Response to Gaza ‘Massacres’

The ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas has taken a concerning regional turn as the Houthi rebels in Yemen claimed responsibility for an attack on central Israel. The group announced this as part of their escalating response to what they describe as "massacres" in Gaza amid the Israeli military’s operations in the strip. Details of the Attack The Houthis, a Shiite militant group with ties to Iran, declared that they launched missile and drone strikes targeting Israel. While the exact impact of these attacks remains unclear, reports suggest that Israel’s defense systems intercepted several threats over its airspace. This marks a significant escalation as the Houthis widen their involvement in the conflict beyond their typical operations within Yemen and neighboring Saudi Arabia. The Houthis’ Justification In their statement, the Houthis framed the attack as retaliation for Israel’s military actions in Gaza, which they characterized as indiscriminate bombings resultin...

Fire: UniJos Senate convenes emergency meeting on Monday

Fire at the University of Jos Library University of Jos is to convene an emergency senate meeting on Monday to review the level of damage done to the institution by the Saturday night inferno. The Vice Chancellor, Prof. Sebastian Maimako, disclosed this on Sunday after inspecting areas affected by the incident. The fire, which lasted for more than six hours, destroyed the Library Complex that equally houses the faculties of management and social sciences. The fire also destroyed examination scripts, books and very crucial materials. Consequently, the vice-chancellor said “the Senate will meet tomorrow (Monday) to take a decision about the unmarked examination scripts that were burnt.” On the cause of the inferno, Maimako said investigation had commenced, adding that “nothing has been confirmed yet. We are still investigating.” The vice chancellor said the school was already working with federal authorities toward establishing a main fire station since the mini fire station in t...

NDLEA arrests 252 suspects, seizes 3,073 kg Indian hemp

NDLEA operatives The NDLEA in Niger on Monday said that it had arrested 252 suspects and seized 3,073.9 kilogramme of Indian hemp(cannabis sativa) in the state. The NDLEA Commander in the state, Mr Joseph Iweajunwa, who disclosed this in Minna, said that the operations were carried out between January and September. “Our operations in Niger State from January to September 2016 led to the arrest of 252 suspects and seizure of 3,073.997 kilogramme of cannabis sativa,’’ he said. Iweajunwa said that within the period, the agency also seized 1, 530 litres of liquid drugs, especially cough syrup with codeine. He said the NDLEA also counselled and rehabilitated 90 drug addicts in the state within the period under review. The agency, he added, secured convictions of only nine of the suspects because the judge at the Federal High Court, Minna, went on leave. “ Now that the judge has resumed more suspects will be tried,’’ he said. He advised motorists, especially commercial vehicle dri...