06 April,2009 02:46 PM IST | | AFP
A powerful earthquake tore through central Italy on Monday devastating mountain towns and killing at least 27 people, authorities said.
Emergency services scrambled to find victims trapped under thousands of collapsed homes and buildings and warned the toll would rise significantly.
Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said he had declared a state of emergency. L'Aquila, capital of Abruzzo region, about 100 kilometres north of Rome, bore the brunt of the quake which struck just after 3:30 am (0700 IST).
Sirens blared across the city as rescue workers raced to find people in the rubble. Thousands of the city's 60,000 residents fled into the streets fearing aftershocks.
Hundreds, some in shock and others sobbing, waited outside L'Aquila's main hospital for treatment, ANSA news agency reported.
Doctors treated people in the open air as only one operating room was functioning, the agency said. The city's university hospital was declared off limits for fear it would collapse and the worst victims were being taken by helicopter to other cities.
Police gave a provisional death toll of 20, which included five children in L'Aquila and other towns in the Apennine mountains that run down central Italy.
