Italy hit by two earthquakes within hours

AP Photo

Earthquakes caused widespread damage and terrified residents in central Italy overnight but killed no one, two months after a strong quake left nearly 300 dead and razed villages in the same area.

Several people were slightly injured, but only a few needed hospital treatment, the Civil Protection Agency said.

In Visso, one of the larger hill towns hit, the mayor said most of the damage had been to buildings already weakened by the Aug. 24 earthquake.

"The situation is ugly and you can see the noticeable damage, but luckily I can say it's better than it looks. We don't have victims or seriously injured people or anyone missing," Giuliano Pazzaglini said.

The quake was nonetheless a severe blow to a town that had started to work on rebuilding after the last tremor, Pazzaglini said, and the hours following it were full of anxiety for people in the border area of the Marche and Umbria regions.

Many people slept in their cars. In Campi, a town of about 200, rescue workers set up some 50 beds in a quake-proof building for people who could not sleep in their homes.