Death toll in Italy natural disaster rises to 241

After every major quake, proposals are made to improve, but they often languish in Italy’s thick bureaucracy, funding shortages and the huge scope of trying to secure thousands of ancient towns and newer structures built before codes were passed or after the codes were in effect but in violation of them.

“It’s the only thing of mine here”, she said.

This evening, Italian authorities reported that the death toll in the natural disaster has risen to 250.

Little is now known about the nationalities of those caught up in the quake, but Romania’s foreign ministry says that five Romanians have died and 11 are missing, while Spain’s foreign ministry says at least one Spaniard has died. The Romanian government alone said 11 of its citizens were missing.

Ministry spokesman Ionut Valcu said Thursday that four Romanians were being treated for injuries in hospitals He did not provide details on the identity of those who died or were injured.

In May 2012, a pair of earthquakes killed dozens of people in northern Italy, while in April 2009, a magnitude-6.3 quake hit in the Aquila region of central Italy, killing 295.

Italian authorities say that the death toll from Wednesday’s quake in the central part of the country has risen to 247. The tremors reduced three towns to rubble and sparked urgent search efforts. Most fled as strong aftershocks threatened even more destruction, she said.

The Italian cabinet will hold an emergency meeting later on Thursday afternoon in order to deliver the provisions necessary to allocate a first tranche of 50 million euros (56 million US dollars) as immediate aid to the stricken areas. The latest temblor struck at about 5:40 am Thursday.

“Unfortunately, 90 percent we pull out are dead, but some make it, that’s why we are here”, said Christian Bianchetti, a volunteer from Rieti who was working in devastated Amatrice where flood lights were set up so the rescue could continue through the night. Rescuers refused to say when their work would shift from saving lives to recovering bodies, noting that one person was pulled alive from the rubble 72 hours after the 2009 quake in the nearby town of L’Aquila.

The worst affected areas were the towns of Amatrice, Arquata, Accumoli and Pescara del Tronto, in the mountainous area 65 miles north-east of Rome.

How many people were killed? Today, he estimated that around 15 to 20 tourists are amongst those buried under the ruins of a local hotel.

In recent Italian quakes, some modern buildings – many of them public institutions – have been the deadliest. No new casualties were reported yet. Now she is being treated in a hospital after being pulled from the rubble as the family mourns the death of the little girl.