As reported by the Italian Officials, a strong earthquake of magnitude 6.2 has struck Italy leaving the affected part in despair and turmoil. With six people confirmed dead, the death toll is likely to rise as the dust settles after the disaster. The quake hit at 3:36 (1:36 GMT), 76 km southeast of the city of Perugia. Several possible aftershocks including one of magnitude 5.4 soon followed the main quake.

The hardest hit places appear to be the towns of Amatrice and Accumoli. A family of four was buried under the debris of Accumoli leaving no sign of life as reported by the town’s mayor.

After the earthquake, authorities urged the Italian citizens to donate blankets, medicines, blood to the victims through the local radio in Rome. Also, the local people were requested to turn off their Wi-Fi connection to assure open communication channel in the midst of the panic.

Apart from this, roads were also blocked in several areas which hampered the efforts to deploy rescue operations.

Also, Facebook has activated safety check-in service for the affected areas and the US state Department has urged all Americans that were caught in the quake to check into the safety service in order to let their family and loved ones know that they are safe.

Image: www.bbc.co.uk/