E-mail updates
Follow on Twitter
Subscribe to RSSNBC's Stephanie Gosk reports.
Updated 11:17 a.m. ET: A strong earthquake rocked a large swathe of northern Italy early on Sunday, killing at least five people, injuring dozens and seriously damaging historic churches, bell towers and a medieval castle.
The 6.0-magnitude quake was centered 22 miles north-northwest of Bologna in northern Italy at a relatively shallow depth of 6.3 miles, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It struck at about 4 a.m. local time and was followed by a series of jolting aftershocks.
At least two aftersocks reached magnitude 5.1, sowing fresh panic, further damaging already weakened buildings and causing more structures to collapse.
"I am 83 and I have never felt anything like this,'' said Lina Gardenghi in the town of Bondeno, near Ferrara, Reuters reported.
"I ran out in my underwear," one man told Italian television.
The epicenter of the quake, the strongest to hit Italy in three years, was in the plains near Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of the Po river valley, and the tremor was felt as far west as Liguria, bordering France, and the Friuli region bordering Slovenia.
The roof of the cathedral in Mirandola collapsed. "Our school children were to receive their first communion here this morning. If it had happened then it would have been a disaster," the local priest said.
Also badly damaged was the 14th century Estense Castle in the town of San Felice Sul Panaro.
Stringer / Italy / Reuters
A woman carries her belongings in Finale Emilia on Sunday after a strong earthquake rocked a large swathe of northern Italy.
The tops of several of the smaller towers of the famous medieval castle, the town's biggest attraction, collapsed and there were fears that the main tower could crumble. Three of the town's churches were severely damaged.
Among the dead was a woman of 106, killed in her bed by a falling roofbeam at her house in the countryside.
One person, believed to be a Moroccan man working a night shift in a polyester factory, died when he was hit by falling debris, and two men, also on the night shift, were killed when part of a modern ceramics factory made of steel collapsed in the town of Sant' Agostino.
"He wasn't supposed to be there. He changed shifts with a friend who wanted to go to the beach," the mother of one of the victims told state television.
Watch World News videos on msnbc.com
The lbody of another victim was spotted under rubble in another factory.
Gashes, cracks, gas leaks
The quake left a large hole and gashes in the side of the Sant' Agostino town hall, which officials said was in danger of total collapse. Gas was also leaking in the town.
Rescue workers were checking reports that other people were buried under rubble and were preparing to house those whose homes had been damaged or destroyed.
There was serious damage to historic buildings and churches in the provinces of Modena and Ferrara, and the quake also shook major towns such as Bologna, Rovigo, Verona and Mantua.
A series of strong aftershocks hit the area, the strongest measuring 5.1, and local mayors ordered residents to stay in the open.
The last major quake to hit Italy was a 6.3 magnitude quake in the central city of L'Aquila in 2009, which killed nearly 300 people.
After that quake, then Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi moved a G8 meeting that was to have been held in Sardinia to near L'Aquila in a show of solidarity with the victims.
In Rome, Pope Benedict prayed for the victims in his Sunday address at the Vatican and the Italian government said it would declare a state of emergency, freeing up funds for reconstruction.
This article includes reporting by NBC News, msbnc.com staff and Reuters.
More world news from msnbc.com and NBC News:
- Taliban, Afghan troops forge agreements as NATO prepares draw-down
- Blind activist Chen in US: 'Promote justice and fairness in China'
- Explosion at school in Italy kills 1, injures several more
- Sri Lanka holds parade to mark victory over Tamil separatists
- Japanese woman, 73, reaches Mount Everest summit
- Vancouver Island park’s 800-year-old tree falls to illegal loggers
Follow us on Twitter: @msnbc_world
Leave a Comment:
It was caused by the Greeks pulling their money out of the banks!
The collapse of Greek as you know it are caused by the banks and theirs investor who ran the government. They get bail out and try to minimal the losses and the middle and lower classes got to foot the bills.
So yes, when you build a foundation on scamming people, it will rumble and dominoes effect through Italy, Spain and Portugal with the same banking control the governments.
mmmmm....beef
hello...is anyone out there
gft67yfuv
you won't let me enter my comment
I was having a problem posting....sorry for the stupid
its ok.
Hey Swatt hate to get picky here but his was in Italy.
In case you didn't know Greeks live in Greece, Italians in Italy, Americans in, well even you should get the point.
I've got an idea, why don't you wait for some form a devastation maybe with more people dying that actually occurs in Greece and then try out your excellent brand of humor again.
You can even haul out that joke again, I'm sure no one will notice.
Good grief! five people (at least) have died. Not the best time for jokes. Not to mention, this happened in ITALY, NOT Greece, which is, of course a whole other place.
It's slowly but surely making it's way to the Pope. It will soon reach the purvy pope, and the ground will open up and swallow him into the hell he speaks so much of.
The earth is changing, and this is why we are witnessing so many quakes and strange weather phenomenons.
I say just get use to it, because the earth has more say over you than you have over the planet, or you can just pray to your imaginary god for protection.
As if that's going to help. /sarc
bwahahahahahahahaha
So, Arieus, hell is a reality for you, but heaven is merely a mythical place. Fascinating.
guys like him have a lot to say when books have pictures ...when they blab faster than a pope in a mini skirt.
Bash god all you want. The Pope said he will give cash to help rebuild. What's wrong with that? How much is Al Qaida donating?
**TYPO ALERT **
A large "swathe" - "a band of linen or the like in which something is wrapped; wrapping; bandage."
Perhaps the writer intended swath - but even that would not be correct - "the space covered by the stroke of a scythe or the cut of a mowing machine."
Maybe it would have been better to write something like: "Damage was reported over a wide area."
where will they get the money
martib
Apparently you skipped the /sarc part of my comment.
You make your heaven and hell on earth by making choices in what you do with your life.
There is nor heaven in the sky, people are just told that so the charlatans can pick their pockets while they are off in lala land thinking they are buying a one way ticket to their heaven in the sky and beyond.
leroy2112
Ask about the interest he will be collecting from those he picks the pockets of after helping them. Using a natural disaster to do "god's work" is how these sly devils slither into the sheeple's lives.
lmao here! Al Qaida! It was an earthquake, not a terrorist attack.
leroy2112
Yes, the purvy pope will rebuild the temples so the sheeple will come for him and the priests to pick the pockets of the sheeple clean.
L'Aquila means little eagle, verdad? How is the city doing these days, three years later.
Was there much to be rebuilt?
Nostradamus predicted an earthquake would strike Italy on May 20, 2012. I don't know if this is the "great" earthquake he predicted or just mere coincidence but it's ironic that Italy would suffer with an earthquake on this date just as Nostradamus predicted it would.
And where exactly in the quatrains or the Lost Book does "2012" occur? Hint: It doesn't.
My dog can predict earthquakes. If he circles and settles clockwise then there will be an earthquake some where on the planet within the next 6 days. If he circles and settles counter-clockwise then there will NOT be an earthquake anywhere in the next 6 days. That, and he will just come out and say "I feel a quake commin' on..." ( I should never have taken him to that Disney course: Teach Your Dog To Talk)
Having said that I grieve for the victims in this natural disaster, but these people are living on a fault line and know it. Like floods, or volcanoes ( think Seattle) or quake zones we try to ride it out, but must all know that Mother Nature is calling the shots.
I'd challenge you---or your dog---to show me from USGS data where there are no earthquakes on the planet in a 6 day period. Doesn't happen.
the earth shakes and it quakes...just too stir up that super volcano
welcome to the real world
So true on that Carsum.
PJ-742966
Earthquakes are happening all the time. Most are too small for us to feel, so we don't fritter about it. The only time a quake disturbs a person is when is knocks you off your feet or brings down building.
We all just have to learn that we are not in control of mother nature.
Hope that there will be no injury and no death.
Article stated that at least 3 people are dead.
This can't be good, really old brick structures don't fare well in earthquakes.
...and wood structures fare very well with tornados....
Nothing fares well in a tornado, but wood buildings if built correctly do hold up better then brick or concrete in earthquakes.
I am most concerned with fire. That is why I live in an igloo. it's fireproof.
---cept for that melting thing.
See what looks like a whole side of the street, from outside appearances, that is all first floor soft-story buildings. This is the type of building with a store, restaurant or some type of open-floor business on the first floor and apartments on the floors above. These buildings pancake down on top of the first floor in strong earthquakes. The good news for these buildings is that the exterior construction looks fairly new, so it's possible the interior construction is up to earthquake standards to lessen the risk of collapse. Given the types of buildings on the street in the photo, it looks as if there was sigificantly less damage than there could have been.
Many of these "old brick" structures have withstood earthquakes for centuries; but, eventually, most things buillt by man can fail
stoopid
-and you always have cold drinks available to you at all tome too.
Pray for the Famiies. Jesus Saves.
How ironic rome invented the name jesus, The J was invented in 1650 ad. there is no J in hebrew, latin or geek.The real messias name is YASHUA . jesus is the english name for BAAL the sun god reborn on the winter solstice dec. 25. The WORD is true the whole world has been deceived into following the counterfit
Mark, names change according to language.
As a kind rebuttal:
Etymology of the name Jesus:
Further information: Jesus (name), Holy Name of Jesus, Yeshua (name), and Messiah
"Jesus" is a transliteration, occurring in a number of languages and based on the Latin Iesus, of the Greek Ἰησοῦς (Iēsoûs), itself a hellenization of the Hebrew יְהוֹשֻׁעַ (Yĕhōšuă‘, Joshua) or Hebrew-Aramaic יֵשׁוּעַ (Yēšûă‘), both meaning "Yahweh delivers" or "Yahweh rescues". In Arabic, it is عيسى.[37][38]
The etymology of the name Jesus in the context of the New Testament is generally expressed as "Yahweh saves",[39][40][41] "Yahweh is salvation"[42][43] and at times as "Jehovah is salvation".[44] The name Jesus appears to have been in use in Judaea at the time of the birth of Jesus.[44][45] Philo's reference (Mutatione Nominum item 121) indicates that the etymology of Joshua was known outside Judaea at the time.[46]
In the New Testament, in Luke 1:26-33, the angel Gabriel tells Mary to name her child "Jesus", and in Matthew 1:21 an angel tells Joseph to name the child "Jesus". The statement in Matthew 1:21 "you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins" associates salvific attributes to the name Jesus in Christian theology.[47][48]
"Christ" ( /ˈkraɪst/) is derived from the Greek Χριστός (Khrīstos), meaning "the anointed" or "the anointed one", a translation of the Hebrew מָשִׁיחַ (Māšîaḥ), usually transliterated into English as "Messiah" ( /mɨˈsaɪ.ə/).[49][50] In the Septuagint version of the Hebrew Bible (written well over a century before the time of Jesus), the word "Christ" (Χριστός) was used to translate the Hebrew word "Messiah" (מָשִׁיחַ) into Greek.[51] In Matthew 16:16, the apostle Peter's profession "You are the Christ" identifies Jesus as the Messiah.[52] In postbiblical usage, "Christ" became viewed as a name, one part of "Jesus Christ", but originally it was a title ("Jesus the Anointed").
Itr mattter not one iota what you call Jesus - unlesss you believe in magic words and magic-like spellls - Abra cadabra!!!!
Ronald Hussein Reagan:
What do you mean precisely?
Good article Stop the Fed. You should be writing for MSNBC. Very informative, and interesting. Thanks.
2NVNo1
Apparently your Jesus missed 7 people that were found dead.
Mayby the ALMIGHTY is giving rome a very small warning of what's coming soon, he did say ALL the STANDING IMAGES are COMING DOWN. "obollisics" etc.
An obelisk is not an image, idiot. One more, it's graven images and it refers to pagan gods' statues.
You really should put down the bong before posting.
***Mark-Wolf*** Thank you for speaking the truth.May Yahweh bless,in the name of Yahshuah.Healing where He deems necessary.
Mark-Seeing as how very few people speak Hebrew, the Bible was translated into other languages. I for one am totally happy they did. YAHW is how the Israelites referred to God because they were afraid to use the name God. My translations, NKJV, NASB, ESV, KJV, all use the name Jesus for the Son of God, He is my Lord and Savior and my faith is in Him.
Mark-Wolf
dayum! do I need to get some kind of insurance protection fer that?
Catastrophic natural events happened well before hominids came to be, and will continue, with or without little fairytales.
It's a shame when tragedy strikes and most of the comments made are thoughtless and not even all that humorous. Bologna is a beautiful old city made of stone more than of simple bricks. It is in northern Italy where I thought earthquakes were less common but then the New Madrid fault is in the middle of America's heartland. Italy has some of the most beautiful art and buildings in Western Civilization. I hope no more lives and no more historical treasures are lost.
There is some humor though. I am surprised that only one Italian lover was reported to have run out of his house in his underwear. I bet there were a few others who ran out of someone else's house scantily clad.
Jack, I agree. I was in Bologna a few years back, and it is quite the beautiful city. I sincerely hope that they recover quickly. Many condolences to the families of the lost. It's not what anyone wants, but it does happen. The Italians are resilient people; they'll put it all back together, even if it is a little bit at a time.
Will be praying for all involved
Sign in front of the church in The Simpsons, after the hurricane strikes: "God Welcomes His Victims."
Grommit! Or is it Gromitt, or....
Now comes the horror stories, victims injured, homes lost.....
Next comes a few hundred million in foreign aid from the U.S. that goes into the pockets of the politicians, because America doesn't have the "stones" to tell their govt where the money should be spent.
The poor people never win...never.
Disagree! Italy is not a Muslim country. Obama is not going to give money to an ally.
I'm glad the children were spared. I pray for a quick recovery for all.
Yesterday a school bombing in the south, today an earthquake in the north. Begining to sound a lot like the rest of the world. Where the hell are you Ed and Hal, ready for round #2?
MAN! That Sucks!I hate Earthquakes! Bludgeoned to Death!
No one needs this when they are broke. Just seems to pile on.
thats sad, hope no more are killed,the myans are right, the end of the world is upon us, the mother ship told me so, so there
CRAP, There goes my Balsamic vinegar supply from Modena.
Also the fine wine and cheese.
I feel your pain......
Five people died, many were injured. Sure sorry you may experience inconvenient disruption of your balsamic vinegar, wine, and cheese supplies.
It was a frog wrestling a snake below the earth's surface that caused this tragedy.
Its nothing but the HAARP technology being tested! I know the Truth and soon everyone else is gonna know. Problem is by that time it may be too late!
I lived in Modena, one of the towns hit by the earthquake. Did you know that Modena built a statue with pieces of the Twin Towers, and holds a ceremony in honor of the people who died on 9/11? Modena remembers American losses on 9/11. America should be as good a friend to this lovely city.
http://4initalia.wordpress.com/2009/09/11/modena-remembers/
Modena holds many churches, damaged in the quake. To see the beauty of Modena,
http://4initalia.wordpress.com/2009/12/10/italy-is-gods-attic/
When I was in Italy, every single village, town or city that I passed through had a memorial to the American soldiers of WWII. All of them, and I mean ALL, were well kept and very neat. Most had fresh flowers on them, too. The Italians remember the Americans in a very good light. In Venice, they had a Pieta draped with an American flag in memorial to 9/11. Despite the arbitrary politics of our countries, the people have a fondness for each other. I sincerely hope they safely recover from this earthquake in a quick and timely fashion.
Yes, Zapper. America has good friends in small and lovely places. They remember us. And America owes it to them to say "We remember you."
6.0 could be just the pre-quake shock.......strange that it was so shallow.....did not report seconds/minutes of quake.......in the next few months anything over a 2.5 will bring more damaged walls down
i felt that
Who do you suppose the Italian authorities are going to arrest and charge with murder for not predicting this earthquake?
Now this along with their economy is just terrible!
i seen a Church in ruin god must be angry at the tea party
That's it? That's the brightest comment you could come up with and your critizing the tea party? Do you even know where Italy is? See, that's why we hate you.
@ Sail Naked---and what, you're the same person that was empathizing with other pinnacles of human compassion over the disruption to the balsamic vinegar, wine and cheese supply? Your comment wasn't any more intelligent than connecting this disaster to the tea party.
FYI Elvis & PJ
The Tea Party movement (TPM) is an American populist political movement that is generally recognized as conservative and libertarian, and has sponsored protests and supported political candidates since 2009. It endorses reduced government spending, cutting taxes, reduction of the national debt and federal budget deficit, and adherence to an original interpretation of the United States Constitution.
What do you have against the Tea Party? Do you favor more and higher taxes? Do you not want to reduce the national Debt? Do you advocate destroying the United States Constitution? What Polices do you support?
Sorry PJ, my comment was directed to Elvis. Not you. I concur with your comment.