Numerous aftershocks have hampered rescue efforts in the aftermath of Wednesday’s magnitude 6.2 earthquake in central Italy. The powerful quake struck at 3:36 a.m. local time and devastated three towns in the Apennine Mountains region. As of Friday afternoon, the death toll had reached at least 278 people with at least 365 people injured.
Arrival in Amatrice
On Wednesday, Paul Workman and the CTV News crew arrived in Amatrice, one of the hardest-hit towns near the quake’s epicentre, about 140 km east of Rome. What they found there was a scene of utter destruction. The once-beautiful historic buildings from the Middle Ages were reduced to rubble and the clock tower that survived the shaking in the town’s square displayed the time the quake struck – just after 3:30 a.m. local time.
The centre of #Amitrice. Destroyed. pic.twitter.com/ujS3CuOmM0
— Paul Workman (@PaulCTV) August 24, 2016
Centre of Amatrice where much of it was destroyed. A large number killed here. pic.twitter.com/D6K0eQ14Tm
— Paul Workman (@PaulCTV) August 24, 2016
Survivors in Amatrice described the scene to Workman as “apocalyptic.” One witness said Amatrice looked like “Dante’s Inferno” with “people crying and screaming for help.” Firefighters released a video showing aerial drone footage of the immediate aftermath in Amatrice.
Last year, Amatrice was voted as one of Italy’s most beautiful towns, now the town is almost unrecognizable. Between 60 and 70 per cent of the town’s historic buildings have been destroyed. Before and after satellite images provided by DigitalGlobe show what the town looked like on April 21, 2014 and after the quake on Aug. 25, 2016.
Instructions: On desktop, hover to toggle between "before" and "after" images. On mobile, tap an image to reveal the "after" photo, tap outside the image to return.
Pesacara del Tronto is another town devastated by the quake. DigitalGlobe’s before image is from April 21, 2014 and the after is from Aug. 25, 2016.
The CTV News team on the ground in Italy has been providing regular updates on Snapchat (follow the account by searching CTVNews). Here’s a look at some of the scenes of devastation from Amatrice.
The search for survivors
In Amatrice, the CTV News team witnessed the frantic search for survivors and heartbreaking scenes of bodies being removed from the debris.
“I have seen bodies taken out of the rubble but nobody who’s survived at this point,” Workman told CTV News Channel.
By Wednesday evening, hundreds of rescue workers arrived with sniffer dogs and huge cranes to lift the piles of rubble off of potential survivors. Workman said the hospital was so badly damaged that injured victims were being treated in the streets.
Another victim taken out of the earthquake rubble in central Italy. #CTV pic.twitter.com/jxMcGUH6zi
— Paul Workman (@PaulCTV) August 24, 2016
Patiently looking for survivors in Amatrice. pic.twitter.com/iDcNzG2RFf
— Paul Workman (@PaulCTV) August 24, 2016
Looking for survivors in Italian earthquake. pic.twitter.com/hEqw9kEBrP
— Paul Workman (@PaulCTV) August 24, 2016
Sunlight fading in search for survivors of Italy earthquake. pic.twitter.com/snFvDQUhHz
— Paul Workman (@PaulCTV) August 24, 2016
Before dark and still searching in #Amatrice pic.twitter.com/h7ATFMcNEV
— Paul Workman (@PaulCTV) August 24, 2016
Many people watching and hoping for survivors of Italian quake. pic.twitter.com/n120wuqZZq
— Paul Workman (@PaulCTV) August 24, 2016
Recovery
On the second day in Amatrice, the CTV News team watched as hope faded during the search for survivors and those that did survive began grappling with what comes next. By Thursday night, more than 5,000 rescue workers were in the quake zone looking for signs of life. More than 200 bodies had been recovered and the number of missing was still unknown.
Paul Workman said there had been more than 500 aftershocks in the aftermath of Wednesday’s quake, which had caused people to flee towards open-air parks to set up temporary shelters. Many others have left the area entirely.
Open air shelter for survivors of #Amatrice. pic.twitter.com/mBUTXRWCjv
— Paul Workman (@PaulCTV) August 25, 2016
Three villages badly damaged. Survivors living in children's park ground. #Amatrice. #CTVNews pic.twitter.com/7cYGcWSFbp
— Paul Workman (@PaulCTV) August 25, 2016
#Amatrice. pic.twitter.com/sxPd5q7Kv1
— Paul Workman (@PaulCTV) August 25, 2016
Illica
On Friday, the CTV News crew arrived in the small hamlet of Illica, Italy where about a dozen families had lived and five people were killed in the quake. He reported that survivors were told they can’t stay because even the structures that did not collapse are too dangerous. These old buildings have more cracks due to aftershocks that continue to rattle the region.
A tent camp is being set up by local authorities for residents to go to for temporary shelter. Workman says it could be weeks or even months before the people of Illica might be able to return to their community.
One Illica resident, Carlo, talked to CTV News about the destruction in his village and held up a sign with information on how the world can help donate to relief efforts.
The CTV News team provided live updates via Snapchat with videos showing the damage in Illica and the tents being set up for residents on the outskirts of the hamlet.
Nearly 1,000 aftershocks have shaken the Apennine Mountains region, including Illica, with the biggest one happening Friday morning at 6:28 a.m. According to the U.S. Geological Service, that aftershock had a magnitude of 4.7; the Italian geophysics institute said it was 4.8.
With files from The Associated Press