Alwaght- A magnitude 6.2 earthquake Shook central Italy early on Wednesday, leaving at least 38 killed and many missing..
Buildings were ruined and areas left without power near the epicentre Rieti in the quake, which sent residents fleeing their homes and running into the streets.
According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the quake struck 10 kilometers southeast of Norcia, a town in Perugia Province, at around 03.30 a.m. local time on Wednesday.
The shallow quake was felt across a broad section of central Italy, including the capital Rome where people in homes in the historic centre felt a long swaying followed by aftershocks.
Initial reports said the quake caused extensive damage to the central town of Amatrice,where several people died and rescue efforts were under way to find survivors.
"The roads in and out of town are cut off. Half the town is gone. There are people under the rubble. There's been a landslide and a bridge might collapse," mayor Sergio Perozzi told RAI radio.
Sergio Perozz added that there were downed buildings in the city centre and that the lights had gone out.
The main street through the town has been devastated and emergency workers are trying to reach six people in a collapsed building.
In 2009 a 6.3-magnitude earthquake in the Aquila region, which was also felt in the Italian capital, left more than 300 dead.
Italy is often shaken by earthquakes. Another quake hit the northern Emilia Romagna region in May 2012, when two violent shocks 10 days apart left 23 people dead and 14,000 others homeless.
