Terremoto

We live just on the edge of the tremor zone, about two hours drive away! Close enough as it turns out to be the worst earthquake in Italy for over thirty years. The terrible thing that has emerged is that a scientist has been warning that this was going to happen as the area has been suffering tremors for the last few months. He was recently severely reprimanded for causing unjustified panic!!!!!!
The epi centre of the earthquake was L'Aquila not far away but south and east of here. It happened at 3.30am yesterday and although David says he was awake just after that neither of us felt a thing, although friends in Viterbo certainly did. The first we even knew of an earthquake was a text message from Selina at 7am!
Of course it was on the news all day, serious with casualty list rising and tens of thousands without homes. Our immediate neighbours have family living in the region that are thankfully all ok but half their main home, a villa in the country has collapsed and two apartments they own in a nearby centro storico have collapsed completely.
My understanding is that because it happened in the middle of the night the casualty list is inevitability higher. We have not yet heard of any damage to property this far away from the centre of the earthquake. It is the major sad topic of conversation everywhere.

PS I Have added this post to -  SIMONEY'S 2nd BLOGIVERSARY LINKY PARTY!
9th August 2010