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Earthquakes close schools, metro system in Rome

By Andrew V. Pestano
Students and teachers stand outside a school in Rome after a 5.6-magnitude earthquake struck more than 50 miles away in central Italy, where several earthquakes occurred on Wednesday. The Rome metro system and schools were evacuated. Photo by Massimo Percossi/European Pressphoto Agency
Students and teachers stand outside a school in Rome after a 5.6-magnitude earthquake struck more than 50 miles away in central Italy, where several earthquakes occurred on Wednesday. The Rome metro system and schools were evacuated. Photo by Massimo Percossi/European Pressphoto Agency

Jan. 18 (UPI) -- Several powerful earthquakes measuring in magnitudes of 4.5 to 5.7 have struck central Italy, a region already scarred by tremors from last year, emergency officials said.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the first quake measuring in a magnitude of 5.3 struck at 10:25 a.m. about 4.3 miles west-northwest of the city of Amatrice, a historic town devastated by an earthquake on Aug. 24 that killed more than 300 people in the region.

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The second earthquake, which measured in a magnitude of 5.7, struck at 11:14 a.m. about 3 miles west-southwest of Amatrice. A 4.5-magnitude tremor followed 10 minutes later about 6 miles northwest of Montereale, which was followed one minute later by a 5.6-magnitude quake 3 miles west-southwest of Amatrice.

At 12:07 p.m., a 4.7-magnitude tremor struck about 1 mile away from the Arquata del Tronto municipality, which was also damaged in the Aug. 24 earthquake. The U.S. Geological Survey reported all earthquakes so far registered at a depth of about 6 miles.

In Rome, some schools closed and the metro system was evacuated due to the strong earthquakes more than 50 miles away.

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Officials have not yet made any statements about casualties or damage. CNN reported heavy snow is blocking roads, which is making initial assessments difficult to conduct.

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