Italy quake search updates

1. Rescue teams in central Italy are searching for survivors of an earthquake that has devastated several towns and villages in a mountainous region
2. More than seventy people have been killed in the provinces of Umbria, Lazio and Marche
3. Quake hits at 03:36 (01:36 GMT), 76km (47 miles) south-east of the city of Perugia, at a shallow depth of 10km (six miles)
4. Quake epicentre is Norcia, near Perugia in mountainous central Italy but tremors felt in Rome
5. One hundred and fifty people are missing in the village of Accumoli alone

The main points again

• At least 73 people have been killed in an earthquake in a mountainous area of central Italy.
• The magnitude 6.2 quake struck at 03:36 (01:36 GMT), 100km (65 miles) north-east of Rome, not far from Perugia, at a depth of 10km (six miles).
• Many of the dead were in Accumoli, close to the epicentre, and a short distance away in Amatrice.
• Many people are still believed buried under the rubble, and the death toll is expected to rise.
• The quake was felt from Bologna in the north of Italy to Naples in the south. 
• Some 80 aftershocks have been reported since. 

That concludes our live coverage of the earthquake in Italy for now. 

For further updates click here.

Italy earthquake town 'like an apocalypse'

Radio 4 PM programme

Tommaso della Longa, from the International Red Cross, is in Amatrice, one of the worst affected towns, and said it was "like an apocalypse". Mr della Longa told Carolyn Quinn that the Red Cross would be providing psychological assistance for people affected by the earthquake, as well as food and shelter, because "scenes like these are really hard to forget".  

Red Cross worker in Amatrice says it is 'like an apocalypse'

BBC World Have Your Say on air now

The BBC World Service programme  World Have Your Say is talking to people in Umbria about the devastation the earthquake has caused. Live now until 6pm.

More images of the destruction in Amatrice

AP

Rescuers carry a stretcher following the earthquake in Amatrice

AFP

A woman cries as she talks on a mobile phone in Amatrice

AP

Rescuers search amid rubble in Amatrice

AFP

A firefighter walks past rubble in Amatrice

Reuters

A destroyed car in Amatrice

Tent camps being set up

Two tent camps will be set up in Pescara and Arquata del Tronto, says the head of civil protection in the region of Le Marche, Cesare Spuri, who is co-ordinating relief efforts in the area.

One will have 30 tents, the other will have 15-20, the news agency Ansa reports.

Others who have lost their homes will be accommodated in fixed structures such as gymnasiums. 

Hot meals are being distributed to the displaced, while rescue work in the rubble continues into the evening, Ansa says.

The BBC's Julian Miglierini walks through Amatrice

Merkel offers help

Germany is ready to provide any aid needed by Italy, Chancellor Angela Merkel has said at a news conference in Estonia.

"The pictures we are seeing are awful. We will be ready to do everything we can to help Italy if needed, and our thoughts are with the people of the region today," Mrs Merkel said.

AFP

The German chancellor sent her condolences

Scenes of devastation and misery

Reuters

Rescuers and onlookers at the site of a collapsed building in Amatrice

AFP

A Virgin Mary statue amid debris in the central Italian town of Pescara del Tronto

AFP

Rescuers in Pescara del Tronto

AP

The quake has been especially traumatic for elderly people​

Indignity amid the suffering

The plight of an 80-year-old woman trapped in the rubble is highlighted by the AP news agency. Rescuers had to persuade her to urinate where she was rather than wait until she got home as they were not in a position to get her out quickly enough. A ranger is quoted as telling her: "Listen, I know it's not nice to say but if you need to pee you just do it.'' 

The woman was later taken to the Ascoli Piceno hospital. Her 47-year-old daughter, who lived with her, was killed, the agency reports.

Nun in Amatrice says seven women still trapped in convent

The World at One

BBC Radio 4

James Reynolds spoke to a nun called Marianna in Amatrice, one of the towns worst affected by the earthquake. Marianna explained how she hid under a table during the earthquake and told him there were seven women from the convent still under the rubble; three nuns and four other women. She said the rescue operation didn't have the right equipment to lift the rubble.   

A nun says there are seven others from the convent still stuck under rubble

Vatican deploys emergency team to Amatrice

A six-man team from the Vatican City State's fire squad has been sent to quake-hit Amatrice, a Vatican statement says. Its deployment reflects "the Pope's concrete proximity to the people affected by the quake", the statement says.

Italy’s National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology seismic activity chart

US State Department quake advice

BreakingDeath toll reaches 73

Seventy-three people are now known to have died in the quake, according to Italy's civil protection unit.

Survivor pulled from rubble

The scene as a survivor is pulled from the rubble in Amatrice - James Reynolds reports

Rescuers battle against the heat and dust

Reuters

Rescuers hard at work in Pescara del Tronto, one of the worst-hit areas

AP

It is feared that the number of fatalities in Amatrice will rise

Amatrice social media appeal

There has been an appeal on social media, saying for each spaghetti all'amatriciana eaten in selected restaurants, €2 (£1.70; $2.25) will go to Amatrice - one from the diner, one from the restaurant. The initiative has been supported by many restaurateurs.

The play on the word Amatriciana picks out "Ama" which means love in Italian.

It says "let's help the population of Amatrice and the area affected by the quake".

Spaghetti all'amatriciana would have been served at the annual festival that was to have taken place on Saturday and Sunday.

Amatrice festival

Amatrice was to have held its 50th annual spaghetti festival on Saturday and Sunday. The town is known for its culinary excellence and has a spaghetti - all'amatriciana - named after it. 

Twitter

Amatrice Twitter page showing the festival had been due on 27 and 28 of August

BreakingAt least 60 killed in Italy quake - Ansa

The Italian news agency Ansa says the death toll has increased to at least 60.

Hospital evacuated