Vatican City, Apr 6, 2009 / 09:16 am
Residents of L'Aquila, Italy are working to recover from a 5.8 magnitude earthquake that has left 92 dead and some 1,500 people injured. Upon hearing of the disaster, Pope Benedict sent a telegram to the local archbishop offering his prayers for the victims and expressing his solidarity.
Italy's largest earthquake since 1997 hit early on Monday morning leveling whole blocks of the 13th- century town L'Aquila as well as surrounding towns and villages. Premier Silvio Berlusconi said on Monday that around 1,500 people were injured and that at least 92 people had died.
''At the moment 4,000 rescuers are at work and concentrating on extracting people from the rubble,'' Berlusconi told journalists.
News of the devastating earthquake reached the Vatican early Monday, prompting Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone to send a telegram in the Pope's name to Archbishop Giuseppe Molinari of L'Aquila.