Image: EPA
This was near the small town of Aci Castello at a depth of 20 kilometers, said the Institute for Geology and Volcanology (INGV).
The earthquake was clearly felt by the population, many people ran out into the streets in fear. The fire department was inundated with calls from concerned citizens. Authorities said there was no information about injuries or damage. As a precaution, both large shopping malls and factories in the industrial zone, where a total of 10,000 people work, have been evacuated. The Messina-Catania-Syracuse regional railway line was shut down for inspections. The fact that no damage was caused is due to the considerable depth of the epicenter, experts reported.
The Mediterranean region is one of the most active earthquake regions in Europe. The central Italian city of L’Aquila was hit by a severe earthquake in 2009 that killed over 300 people. In August 2016, almost 300 people died when a magnitude 6.2 earthquake shook the town of Amatrice and several neighboring towns in the Appennine mountains.
Source: Nachrichten
