Earthquake hits central Italy but no immediate damage

Nevin Al Sukari - Sana'a - Schools were closed in some areas as a precaution and trains were delayed pending checks on the railway lines. ― Reuters pic

ROME, Sept 18 — A 4.8-magnitude earthquake struck central Italy north of Florence this morning, sending residents into the streets but causing no immediate damage, authorities said.

Schools were closed in some areas as a precaution and trains were delayed pending checks on the railway lines.

Italy’s National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) measured the quake at 4.8 on the Richter scale, with its epicentre near Marradi, a town of about 3,000 residents in the province of Florence within the Apennine mountain range.

It occurred at 5:10am (0310 GMT).

Firefighters wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that frightened residents had been calling emergency services but “no personal injuries have been reported at this time”.

The mayor of Marradi, Tommaso Triberti, told Rainews24 television that firefighters were conducting checks inside private homes.

“There is a lot of concern. All the people are in the street but no particular damage has been reported,” he said.

A 4.5-magnitude earthquake struck nearby Mugello in 2019, again causing minimal damage but cracking the facade of a 17th-century church.

The town of Mugello was hit by a devastating earthquake in 1919, one of the century’s worst, killing about 100 people.

The central Apennines are at high risk of seismic activity. — AFP