Flags flew at half mast across Italy today as the country observed a day of mourning for the victims of an earthquake that killed nearly 300 people
People attend a mass funeral service for victims of the earthquake, at a gymnasium arranged in a chapel in Ascoli Piceno. Pic/AFP
Italy: Flags flew at half mast across Italy today as the country observed a day of mourning for the victims of an earthquake that killed nearly 300 people. President Sergio Mattarella paid tribute to the "extraordinary effort" of more than 4,000 rescue experts and volunteers as he began what was set to be an emotionally charged day with a brief visit to Amatrice, around 100 kilometres northeast of Rome.
People attend a mass funeral service for victims of the earthquake, at a gymnasium arranged in a chapel in Ascoli Piceno. Pic/AFP
The small mountain town suffered the heaviest losses in the disaster with around two thirds of the quake's 284 confirmed victims buried under tonnes of collapsed masonry in its devastated centre.
The elderly head of state looked visibly moved as he contemplated the site of a razed house on the edge of a zone that has been sealed off by rescue workers for fear of further collapses. There are fears more bodies will be recovered in Amatrice, a holiday spot that was packed with visitors when the quake struck on Wednesday. And of the 388 people hospitalised, several are reportedly in a critical state.
Emergency services are more confident that they have accounted for everyone in the smaller outlying hamlets to the north of Amatrice. Mattarella was also due to visit the village of Accumoli before joining Prime Minister Matteo Renzi at a funeral for some of the victims in Ascoli Piceno, capital of Marche, one of three regions affected by the quake.
284
No. of people killed in the disaster
388
No. of people who've been hospitalised
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