Following a powerful earthquake in central Italy that has killed more than 200 people, Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said Wednesday the priority of the authorities is to help recover people from the rubble.
“We pledge that will not leave anyone behind, no family, no village, no hamlet,” Renzi said in brief televised comments.
“In difficult moments, Italy knows what to do,” the prime minister also said.
Renzi said he would visit the towns that have been affected by the earthquake. The hardest hit were Arquata and Pescara del Tronto in the Marche region, and Amatrice and Accumoli in the Lazio region.
The death toll is expected to rise as numerous buildings collapsed in areas close to the epicenter of the 6.2-magnitude quake, near the Umbrian town of Norcia, AFP reported.
Christos Stylianides, the European commissioner for crisis management, said in a statement that the European Union “stands in full solidarity with the Italian people and the national authorities at this time.”
“The EU is ready to help,” he added.
“We stand, as ever, in solidarity with the Italian nation and are ready to assist in any way we can,” Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said on Twitter.
We stand, as ever, in solidarity with the Italian nation and are ready to assist in any way we can. #ItalyEarthquake pic.twitter.com/l7yEZWrvth
— Jean-Claude Juncker (@JunckerEU) August 24, 2016
“Half the village has disappeared,” Sergio Pirozzi, the mayor of Amatrice, told local media, AFP reported. “The situation is dramatic, there are many dead. I cannot give a toll for now because rescue efforts are under way and it is very, very difficult.”
The original earthquake struck just after 3:30 a.m., according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and was followed an hour later by a 5.4-magnitude aftershock.
The USGS issued a red alert, which signifies the risk of significant casualties and damage.
Tremors from the quake were felt in Rome, 150 kilometers from the epicenter.
This article has been updated with new information on the death toll.