The first funerals for victims of the devastating quake that hit the mountainous region this week were held yesterday as the country prepared for an emotionally charged day of mourning. Ahead the funeral, caskets were lined up in a gym where mourners have been bidding farewell to loved ones, kneeling, crying and placing their hands on flower-covered caskets.
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The death toll rose to 268 yesterday, with almost 400 people being treated for injuries in hospitals.
It left one key access bridge to Amatrice unusable, and damaged another one.
This is the crumbling hulk of the Hotel Roma in Amatrice, central Italy, where a strong quake had hit a few hours earlier. In Amatrice, the situation was more uncertain; Mayor Pirozzi has estimated there could still be 15 people unaccounted for.
The catastrophic natural disaster that hit central Italy on Wednesday sparked an outpouring of goodwill from around the world, including Israel and the local Jewish community.
The World Trade Center in NY responded to the tragedy Thursday night by lighting its 124-meter spire in the green, white and red colors of the Italian flag.
Civil protection officials gave the updated toll late Friday, raising it from 278 after three more bodies were found in Amatrice, the town most badly affected by the violent temblor that hit central Italy this week.
Fabio Fulvio a rescue volunteer said: “We have started to deal with the bodies of victims and we’ll send them to morgues in nearby Rieti and L’Aquila”. “Each community must remain where it is because what is needed is a sense of belonging”. Later Friday, one of Pope Francis’ top advisers is to celebrate a funeral Mass for seven other victims south of Rome.
Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has declared a state of emergency for the region, allowing the government to release an immediate 50 million euros ($56 million) for the relief work.
“No night can last so long that the sun never rises again”.
He has promised to rebuild the shattered homes and said he would also renew efforts to bolster Italy’s flimsy defenses against earthquakes that regularly batter the country.
Now some food lovers hope that they can at least harness the symbol of the devastated town that lost the most for a good cause.
Renzi’s government and local authorities are now facing questions as to why there were so many deaths in a sparsely-populated area so soon after a 2009 quake in the nearby city of L’Aquila left 300 people dead.
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Cultural Minister Dario Franceschini said all 293 culturally important sites, many of them churches, had either collapsed or been seriously damaged. The quake left 267 dead and hundreds injured.
