Earthquake in Cosenza, magnitude 5 shock with epicenter in Pietrapaola.

An earthquake of magnitude 5.0 has hit Calabria, with epicenter in Pietrapaola, in the Cosenza area, at a depth of 21 kilometers. The shock was It was also clearly felt in Puglia and Sicily, causing scenes of panic, especially on the Ionian coast of Calabria, in the Crotone and Catanzaro areas. At the moment, no damage to people or things has been reported, but as a precaution, firefighter teams from the Crotone and Cosenza commands have been sent to the epicenter area. The mayor of Pietrapaola, Manuela Labonia, declared that the situation is under control, but citizens are still on the streets.

Subsequently, two other tremors occurred, of magnitude 2.3 and 3.1 respectively, recorded again in Pietrapaola and Bocchigliero. The main tremor caused panic, especially among the inhabitants of the upper floors of the buildings, who took to the streets, especially in Crotone, where many people gathered in the stadium area to feel safer.

The mayor of Cosenza, Franz Caruso, confirmed that, although the shock was felt, there were no scenes of panic and the municipality is on alert, with no reports of critical issues from the national Civil Protection.

Domenico Costarella, director of Civil Protection of Calabria, declared that checks have been started with the mayors of the municipalities involved and that a survey will be carried out to verify any damage.

Il President of the Calabria Region, Roberto Occhiuto, communicated that the regional Civil Protection, with the help of the Fire Brigade, is collaborating with the local authorities to monitor the situation.

The Italian Situation Room of the Civil Protection Department has been in contact with the local structures and the Head of Department, Fabio Ciciliano, has convened the Crisis Unit for 23pm, in order to take stock of the situation with the local authorities and operational civil protection structures. The first checks did not reveal any damage to people or things, but the reconnaissance is still ongoing to get a clearer picture of the situation.