At least 26 people were injured when a 4.7-magnitude earthquake struck near Naples in southern Italy on Friday night. The tremor, at 7.46pm, caused power outages, disrupted public transport and damaged a pier in Campi Flegrei, the site of Europe’s largest volcanic crater.
It was the strongest quake to hit the region in 40 years, causing a section of cliff and several unoccupied buildings to collapse. Five of the injured were taken to hospital, and about 300 people were evacuated from Pozzuoli, near the epicentre, after landslides. Many residents remained on the streets overnight, afraid that their homes had been damaged or could collapse.
Rescuers warn of continuing danger
A rescuer told Reuters that one person was “only alive by a miracle”. Italy’s civil protection minister, Nello Musumeci, urged caution and warned that the volcanic activity was not over.
The quake, which was 3km deep, was felt across Naples, the island of Ischia and as far away as the Sorrento peninsula. Italy’s national institute of geophysics and volcanology said it was part of an ongoing seismic swarm, and seismographs afterwards recorded about 60 further tremors, one of magnitude 3.1 at 5.47am that was felt by residents of Bacoli, Pozzuoli and Naples.
“There is a risk that the mountain could continue to collapse, so it is dangerous,” the rescuer said. “What makes us angry is that this situation was foreseeable, because there had already been problems with the mountain for a year and a half … The municipality knew about the situation and did nothing – perhaps if they had acted sooner, this could have been avoided.”
Damage in Pozzuoli
The heaviest damage was in Pozzuoli, where a building partly collapsed and large chunks of rubble crushed parked cars without causing injuries. Nine buildings have been deemed unsafe as inspections continue.
“We were afraid,” one resident said. “We all ran out of our homes because it was impossible to stay inside. It lasted a long time and was very powerful, and we no longer know what we are supposed to do. We have been left here in the middle of the street, and no one has come to check on us or tell us what to do. We are here with very young children.”
Transport and power disruption
Firefighters said they received reports of lifts becoming stuck and of a high-voltage pylon supplying electricity to the Agnano area of Naples partly collapsing, causing disruption for 100,000 households.
The port authority said the Pozzuoli pier was unusable and ferry and hydrofoil services to the islands had been suspended. High-speed train passengers faced delays of up to six hours, with some services rerouted.
