Announcement

**Giuseppe** · December 23, 2008, 10:55 AM

Italy: 3.5 earthquake hits northern italy (16:18 gmt+1)

An earthquake of 3.5 magnitude has been reported in northern Italy today at around 16:18 local time (GMT+1).

Epicenter has been located near Reggio Emilia town.

No immediate damage reports are available.

Tremors have been felt clearly in several other areas and town, even at more than 200 Km from epicenter.

At Padua tremors have shaken building, creating a bit of panic into population.

To see RSOE report, follow this link: http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/seism_r...39182&lang=eng

**Giuseppe** · December 23, 2008, 11:42 AM

Re: Magnitude 5.3 - NORTHERN ITALY

[Updated Magnitude: 5.2 / 5.3]

Reuters AlertNet - Earthquake strikes northern Italy (2nd)

Earthquake strikes northern Italy

23 Dec 2008 16:19:55 GMT
Source: Reuters
(Updates with details)
ROME, Dec 23 (Reuters) -

An earthquake of 5.2 magnitude struck northern Italy on Tuesday near the city of Parma, but no damage or injuries were initially reported, Italy's civil protection agency said.

The earthquake was felt across northern Italy, from financial capital Milan to Florence to Trieste, local media reported.

The U.S. Geological Survey, which estimated the earthquake's magnitude at a slightly higher 5.3, said it struck at a depth of 28.9 km (18 miles). It ranks quakes in this range as moderate.

"The area (near the quake's epicentre) is well constructed, so there shouldn't be serious problems," said Enzo Boschi, president of Italy's national institute of geophysics.

He added the quake was "nothing catastrophic" but told Italian media that there could be other quakes of smaller magnitudes in the coming hours.

He said the quake was felt in a radius of 100 to 150 km from its epicentre southeast of Parma.

(Reporting by Phil Stewart and Gavin Jones; Editing by Jon Boyle)

<cite cite="http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/LN226731.htm">Reuters AlertNet - Earthquake strikes northern Italy</cite>

**Giuseppe** · December 23, 2008, 12:32 PM

Re: Magnitude 5.3 - NORTHERN ITALY

Reuters AlertNet - Unusually strong earthquake hits northern Italy

Unusually strong earthquake hits northern Italy

23 Dec 2008 17:24:19 GMT
Source: Reuters
(Updates with details)
PARMA, Italy, Dec 23 (Reuters) -

An earthquake of 5.1 magnitude struck northern Italy on Tuesday near the city of Parma, but no damage or injuries were reported, Italy's civil protection agency said.

The earthquake was unusually strong for northern Italy and was felt from the financial capital Milan to Florence to Trieste.

Startled Italians jammed telephone lines after the quake and train service was briefly interrupted on some lines, local media reported.

"There is some anguish, a lot of fear ... in the town hall itself there was a lot of panic," said Alberto Pazzoni, mayor of Traversetolo, a town just outside Parma and very near the quake's epicentre.

"But the information we have got from the police and local health services is very comforting. There have been no calls to emergency services," he said.

Earthquakes can be particularly dangerous in parts of Italy where centuries-old buildings are left in disrepair. In 2002, an earthquake measuring 5.4 flattened a school in southern Molise region, killing 27 children and a teacher.

Enzo Boschi, head of the National Institute of Geophysics, said this quake appeared to be "nothing catastrophic". Still, he warned there could be more quakes of smaller magnitude in the coming hours.

"The area (near the quake's epicentre) is well constructed, so there shouldn't be serious problems," Boschi told Sky Italia television.

The U.S. Geological Survey, which estimated the earthquake's magnitude at a slightly higher 5.3, said it struck at a depth of 28.9 km (18 miles). It ranks quakes in this range as moderate.

Italy's civil protection agency said its struck at a depth of 26 km.

"A lot of people were afraid," said Giordano Bricoli, mayor of the small town of Neviano degli Arduini, also near the epicentre.

He estimated the quake lasted about 20 seconds and said officials were verifying whether any buildings had collapsed.

(Reporting by Phil Stewart and Gavin Jones; Editing by Michael Roddy)

<cite cite="http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/LN226731.htm">Reuters AlertNet - Unusually strong earthquake hits northern Italy</cite>

**Shiloh** · December 23, 2008, 06:03 PM

Re: Magnitude 5.3 - NORTHERN ITALY

Source: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/...us2008ayb4.php

Magnitude 5.2 - NORTHERN ITALY

Earthquake Details
Magnitude 5.2
Date-Time

* Tuesday, December 23, 2008 at 21:58:26 UTC
* Tuesday, December 23, 2008 at 10:58:26 PM at epicenter

Location 44.626?N, 10.482?E
Depth 17.3 km (10.8 miles) (poorly constrained)
Region NORTHERN ITALY
Distances

* 23 km (14 miles) SE (146?) from Parma, Italy
* 69 km (43 miles) WNW (282?) from Bologna, Italy
* 100 km (62 miles) SSW (204?) from Verona, Italy
* 177 km (110 miles) WNW (297?) from SAN MARINO

Location Uncertainty horizontal +/- 7.4 km (4.6 miles); depth +/- 17.7 km (11.0 miles)
Parameters NST= 74, Nph= 74, Dmin=222.6 km, Rmss=0.82 sec, Gp= 58?,
M-type=body magnitude (Mb), Version=6
Source

* USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)
Event ID us2008ayb4

**Shiloh** · December 23, 2008, 06:16 PM

Re: Magnitude 5.3 - NORTHERN ITALY

Source: http://unionesarda.ilsole24ore.com/m...ontentId=55962

Google translation:
Earthquake in central-north
Quake of magnitude 5.2
The quake, of magnitude 5.2 and the epicenter of the provinces of Parma and Reggio (between Traversetolo, Neviano of Arduini, Vetto and Canossa), has frightened many people, who have stormed the centers of the fire service and forces' order

A strong shock and insistent, with epicenter in Emilia felt for several interminable seconds to 16.25 in different parts of North and Central Italy, has caused apprehension and fear in the population, but fortunately no wounded and damage is estimated limited the investigations made up to evening from Prefectures, in agreement with the Civil Defense and local authorities. The quake, of magnitude 5.2 and the epicenter of the provinces of Parma and Reggio (between Traversetolo, Neviano of Arduini, Vetto and Canossa), has frightened many people, who have stormed the centers of the fire service and forces' order. In the evening, at the headquarters of the Prefecture of Parma, a summit with the participation of the undersecretary Guido Bertolaso, and the chairman of the Region Emilia-Romagna, Vasco Errani, to take stock of the situation. A meeting - held to clarify and reaffirm the head of Civil Defense regional, Demetrio Egidi - "not dictated by a situation of gravity, because there are no injuries or homes to collapse." Errani anticipated that the team will leave tomorrow to see the damage: "Certainly a significant event will have priority in the declaration of a state of emergency, but everything worked as it should have." The quake was also felt in Milan, Genoa, Venice, even in Florence. A Lecco left several people from the offices and factories, especially in the area of the lake. "The quake was shallow, and this explains the fact that it was distinctly felt in several provinces," said Egidi. The chairman of the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV), Enzo Boschi, did not exclude the risk of further shocks of adjustment in the next few hours. Diverse, but none seriously, they came to power operating in the provinces of Parma and Reggio. In some areas, telephones were isolated, and those phones that in some cases fixed; Langhirano to (Parma) is a burst gas pipeline on a provincial road, a Mamiano there was a substantial collapse of rubble; damage to Felino church and the church of Saint Ambrose, in the area of Neviano. In Reggiano injuries have been reported particularly in the church and bell tower of Quattro Castella, the temple was closed to the cult precautionary and tomorrow we will decide whether the church will host the Christmas celebrations. In San Polo d'Enza in different merchandise stores fell from the shelves, at Santa Maria Nuova di Reggio were removed small pieces of plaster in some areas, especially in neonatology, but the situation did not cause concern. Trenitalia has temporarily stopped rail traffic on the lines Bologna-Verona-Bologna and Milan, a necessary precaution - he did know RFI - to make the necessary checks on infrastructure. The interruption lasted little more than twenty minutes and created delays between 30 and 120 minutes. The Inter-Agency for the Po (Aipo) has ordered inspections of sull'asta river, but were not noted "critical elements". I reggiani, in particular, have relived the fear of the earthquake of 15 October 1996, when shortly before midday a quake of 7 or grade, with epicenter in Novellara, caused the deaths of two elderly for heart attack, severe damage to buildings, churches and public infrastructure and forced reggiani 650 (and about ninety Modena) to leave homes at risk. The damages were measured in hundreds of billions of lire.
23/12/2008 22:18

**FrenchieGirl** · December 24, 2008, 01:41 PM

Re: Magnitude 5.3 - NORTHERN ITALY

Real time earthquakes for the Mediterranean Region (also includes reports of real time earthquakes for the rest of the world):

European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre

http://www.emsc-csem.org/index.php?page=home

**FrenchieGirl** · December 25, 2008, 03:24 AM

Re: Magnitude 5.3 - NORTHERN ITALY

http://www.emsc-csem.org/index.php?p...tail&id=113835
Magnitude ML 4.3
Region NORTHERN ITALY
Tusco-emilian Apennine
Date time 2008-12-25 at 03:08:31.6 UTC
Location 44.65 N ; 10.46 E
Depth 30 km
Distances 15 km SW Reggio nell'emilia (pop 158,820 ; local time 04:08 2008-12-25)
1 km N Quattro castella (pop 12,413 ; local time 04:08 2008-12-25)

Announcement

Magnitude 5.3 - NORTHERN ITALY

Magnitude 5.3 - NORTHERN ITALY

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