VISSO: Italy on Thursday vowed to rebuild every home destroyed after a powerful earthquake that forced thousands to flee in terror but “miraculously” did not cause any fatalities.

Two months after tremors in the same area left nearly 300 dead, two powerful shocks ripped through a mountainous, sparsely-populated part of central Italy on Wednesday evening.

Despite numerous building collapses, no deaths were reported in the aftermath of the 5.5 and 6.1 magnitude tremors.

“Given the strength of the shocks the absence of any deaths or serious injuries is miraculous,” Interior Minister Angelino Alfano said.

The government announc­ed the release of 40 million euros and extended a state of emergency declared after the deadly August quake.

“We will rebuild everything, 100 per cent, that is the government’s commitment,” said Vasco Errani, the reconstruction supremo appointed after the August disaster.

More than 200 aftershocks rattled the area through the night and into Thursday after the initial two were felt in Rome, some 175 kilometres away from the epicentres.

Marco Rinaldi, mayor of the village of Ussita, described “apocalyptic” scenes. “People were in the streets screaming. Many houses have collapsed. Our town is finished,” he said. “I’ve felt a lot of earthquakes but that was the strongest I’ve ever felt. Fortunately everyone had already left their homes after the first quake so I don’t think anyone was hurt.”
Geologist Mario Tozzi told AFP the damage was caused by a new earthquake, rather than, as first thought, aftershocks from the August one. Tozzi said the twin tremors were consistent with a pattern of seismic “double strikes” in the central Appenines.

Wednesday’s tremors struck an area just to the north of Amatrice, the mountain town which was partially razed by the August quake and suffered the bulk of the fatalities. The epicentres were near the village of Visso, located on the edge of the region of Marche close to the border with Umbria.

The civil protection agency reopened tent camps set up after the August earthquake but officials warned they could only be a temporary solution as winter approaches.

Many mountain villages in the area are located at an altitude of over 2,000 feet and overnight temperatures will soon be falling below freezing.

Published in Dawn, October 28th, 2016