The towns worst-hit by the quake – Amatrice, Arquata, Accumoli and Pescara del Tronto – do not have large populations, but the influx of summer tourists meant that authorities were struggling to estimate how many people were missing, the BBC says.
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The number of people killed in an quake that flattened parts of central Italy rose to 267 Friday as rescue workers pulled more bodies from mounds of debris and families prepared to hold the first funerals. In some cases, the anti-seismic building standards have been part of the problem, including using reinforced cement for roofs that are then too heavy for weak walls when quakes strike.
Rieti Hospital director Pasquale Carducci said: “The British woman was brought here by rescue workers on Wednesday while her husband was taken to L’Aquila”.
Several aftershocks have occurred since the initial quake struck, around 3:30 a.m. local time, and tremors were felt as far away as Rome, more than 100 miles from the earthquake’s epicenter.
“We escaped by pure luck, the stairs of the house held and we ran, blindly in the dark and dust”, she said with tears rolling down her face.
Funding shortfalls and bureaucracy are obstacles to making the country’s buildings quake-resistant.
Diners will also be given the opportunity to make donations directly.
Mr Johnson said extra staff had been sent to the region to help provide support to Britons who have been affected. In the cities, upgrades are stifled by the condominium-style rules of buildings requiring the agreement of multiple owners for such investments.
Rescuers make their way through destroyed houses following an natural disaster in Pescara Del Tronto, central Italy, Thursday.
The 6.2 magnitude quake struck a cluster of mountain communities 140 km (85 miles) east of Rome early on Wednesday as people slept, destroying hundreds of homes.
“We are the best in the world when it comes to managing emergencies, but that is not enough”.
Another investigation was opened into why Amatrice’s school had collapsed, despite the fact it had only opened in 2012 and was meant to have been earthquake-proof.
Caritas Italiana has set up a response center in Pettino, a town near L’Aquila, to coordinate relief efforts and collect and redistribute food, blankets, hygiene items and clothes, according to a press release.
Sky News said the apartment owners’ two children survived but their condition was unknown.
The EU is assisting Italy in its emergency response. Their convictions were overturned on appeal.
In Pescara del Tronto, rescue crews were looking Thursday for three people believed crushed in a hard-to-reach area.
“We have been saved, not like half the people in this place who have lost their lives”, she said, breaking down in tears.
“It’s not easy for them”, said civil protection volunteer Tiziano De Carolis, who was helping to care for the homeless in Amatrice.
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Amatrice is made up of 69 hamlets that teams from around Italy were working to reach with sniffer dogs, earth movers and other heavy equipment.
