Alwaght- Death toll from Italy's 6.2-magnitude earthquake has reached to 247, the country's civil protection agency said, raising a previous count of 159.
In the small Italian towns shaken hard by the shallow earthquake, the search for bodies was continuing through the night with rescuers feverishly digging through the rubble of downed homes and apartments
The 6.2 magnitude quake, which sent residents fleeing their homes and running into the streets, is Italy's deadliest since a 2009 quake in the same area. A family of four were also trapped under the rubble and showing no signs of life.
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.
