UN speaks with Italian president over powerful earthquake

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday spoke with Italian President Sergio Mattarella to express "his deepest condolences" to the president and to the people of Italy for the loss of life and destruction caused by a powerful earthquake, a UN spokesman told reporters here.

"The secretary-general commended the robust and timely efforts undertaken by the Italian government to rescue and assist those affected by the earthquake," said the spokesman.

"The secretary-general expressed the United Nations' solidarity with the Italian government and people and assured him of the readiness of the United Nations to provide additional assistance, if requested," the spokesman added.

Shortly after the quake struck the central Italy on Wednesday, Ban said via his spokesman here that he was "saddened" by the reports of lives lost and damage caused by the powerful tremor.

The death toll from a powerful earthquake in central Italy has risen to 247, Italian authorities confirmed early on Thursday.

A 6.0-magnitude tremor on Wednesday hit a mountainous area near the city of Rieti, some 140 km northeast of Rome, at 3:36 a.m. local time (0136 GMT), according to the National Institute of Volcanology and Seismology.

The places hardest hit were the towns Amatrice and Accumoli in Rieti province, and the villages of Arquata del Tronto and Peschiera del Tronto in the eastern Marche region. Enditem