There were no Filipinos who are included in the casualties in Italy’s strong quake.
The Department of Foreign Affairs said there were no Filipino casualties reported in the 6.6-magnitude earthquake that jolted central Italy Sunday.
This was based on the information relayed to the media by DFA spokesperson Charles Jose.
The DFA also assured the public that the Philippine Embassy is making sure all Filipinos in Italy are safe after the tremor.
According to DFA statistics, Italy has the largest population of overseas Filipinos in Western Europe.
Based on Italian Ministry of Interior records, there are around 155,945 registered or documented Filipinos with valid permits to stay and work in Italy.
According to the reports of Italian authorities, the powerful 6.6-magnitude earthquake that rocked central Italy injured at least 20 people.
Based on the records, Sunday’s quake is the strongest tremor to hit the country in more than three decades.
According to the US Geological Survey, the quake’s epicenter was at 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) north of Norcia, and was felt miles away in Rome.
National Institute for Geophysics and Volcanology said there have been about 200 aftershocks since Sunday’s quake in the border area between the Marche and Umbria regions.
Some 15 aftershocks range between magnitude 4 and 5.
The magnitude 6.6 earthquake follows tremors last week and comes on the heels of a 6.1 magnitude devastating quake in August 24, which killed nearly 300 people and flattened entire villages.
It was Italy’s biggest quake since a 6.9-magnitude that once struck the south of the country in 1980, which left 3,000 people dead.
Prime Minister Matteo Renzi reiterated a government pledge to rebuild every damaged house and ensure that dozens of remote communities do not become ghost towns.
“Fatigue must not turn into resignation” he urged, during a short press conference in Rome, adding that an extraordinary cabinet meeting on Monday would discuss the quake situation.
Fire and rescue services said six people had been pulled alive from rubble in Norcia.
Fabrizio Curcio, the civil protection chief said, some villages are cut off, so the impact there has not been (–foul word(s) removed–)sed, while some 15,000 people are without electricity.