Eight killed by Italian quake after new fault line opens up

At least eight people were reported dead today after the Emilia Romagna region of northern Italy was hit by another earthquake, this one of 5.8 magnitude, amid fears that a new fault line had opened up.

Several people were thought to be buried in rubble but a series of five aftershocks was hampering rescuers searching collapsed buildings across a wide area.

The quake was felt across many parts of Italy with people running into the streets as far away as Milan, Venice, Genoa and Perugia with shocks also felt in neighbouring Austria.

In Bologna shops, schools, offices and factories emptied while neighbouring towns and cities ordered immediate evacuations of all public buildings.

Two workers were thought to have been killed in Medolla near Modena after a warehouse collapsed.

Fernando Ferioli, the mayor of Finale Emilia, which was also severely damaged in an earlier earthquake, said: “It’s a disaster here. There have been fresh collapses. This is another earthquake, it is not an aftershock.” The phone network was in virtual meltdown and mobile coverage was sporadic as frantic relatives and friends tried to call loved ones.

Local authorities appealed for individuals and companies to remove passwords from wi-fi networks so

people could have access to information and email relatives.

The area most affected was about 25 miles north-west of Bologna. The region has been suffering a series of aftershocks following the first earthquake in the early hours of May 20 which left seven dead. A spokesman for the Italian Geophysical and Volcanology Institute said: “It looks like a new fault line has broken.’’

TV pictures today showed crumpled buildings in nearby San Felice Panaro as rescuers tried to reach survivors. The town’s mayor Alberto Silvestri said: “This is very serious.” Train services north of Bologna, a major junction in the Italian network, were disrupted.

The Emilia Romagna region is famous for its cuisine and is the home of Parmesan cheese and Parma ham.