An earthquake struck central Italy in the early hours of Wednesday, killing at least 120 people and destroying buildings in towns and villages across the regions of Lazio, Umbria and Marche.
At least 120 people died and hundreds more were injured in the magnitude 6.2 quake. The hardest-hit towns were Amatrice, Accumoli near Rieti, 80 miles north-east of Rome, and Pescara del Tronto further east.
Sergio Pirozzi, the mayor of Amatrice, said more than 2,500 people had been left homeless. Eyewitnesses reported scenes of devastation in Pescara del Tronto. Bodies were carried out of the hilltop town on stretchers as the road into the village had been destroyed.