More misery awaits Italian quake victims

Hurriyet Daily News with wires

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"We hope not to stay here very long, but where can we go," said Pietro Musumeci, a retired military officer, who said he doubts he, his wife, his son and his chow dog will be allowed to return to their damaged home. "We have nothing but the clothes on our back."

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said the death toll from Monday's quake had reached 279, including 20 children and teenagers.


The government also has increased the sum allocated for emergency aid to $132.73 million and Berlusconi said quake reconstruction will cost several billion euros. Strong aftershocks overnight rattled residents who are living in 31 camps set up in the region of Abruzzo after the April 6 temblor that devastated the city of L Aquila.

While Berlusconi two days ago said the tent residents should consider the experience a camping trip, some of the inhabitants are concerned about how long they ll be roughing it. "We could be here for months or years," said Michela Pietropaoli, 38, who’s sharing a tent with her parents, her two dogs, and five other people. "We need water to wash with, we need lights, and we’re cold at night," Pietropaoli told Bloomberg.

A 6.3-magnitude quake struck Abruzzo early Monday, killing 279 people and leaving 28,000 homeless. About 10,000 people are staying, at state expense, in one of 171 hotels on the Adriatic coast, though the amount of time they can remain there is unclear. Others have gone to friends or relatives outside the quake zone. The rest are in their cars, or in their own tents pitched in backyards.

"The authorities aren’t telling us how long we’ll be here," said Claudio Nobile, 73, as he stood in line for lunch at one of four tent camps in L Aquila. "My house isn’t habitable, and I’m afraid to go back because of the cracks in the walls."

Italian President Giorgio Napolitano toured the quake area yesterday, reported The Associated Press. He stopped at the collapsed dorm, visited the nearly leveled small town of Onna, and met with some of the homeless. He also stopped at the hangar where the coffins of the victims are lined up before Friday's funeral. At the Vatican, Pope Benedict XVI celebrated a Holy Thursday Mass that included the blessing of holy oils - some of which the church will send to the earthquake zone.