The southern Italian city of Naples was struck by a 4.4-magnitude quake early on Thursday, causing minor damage and requiring 11 people to attend hospital, officials said.
The quake was the strongest in recorded history around the Phlegraean Fields, a sprawling area of ancient volcanoes that covers a broad swath of the Naples metropolitan area. It matched the magnitude of another quake in the same area last May that has put the population on alert.
Residents shaken awake by the early-morning quake sought safety in the streets, as they did in May.
The temblor, which loosened stone and cement from some facades, was centred just offshore from Pozzuoli, a seaside suburb bordering Naples.
Seismologists have reported a fresh increase in activity around the Phlegraean Fields over recent weeks (Alessandro Garofalo/LaPresse via AP)
Mayor Gaetano Manfredi told reporters that one church, a seven-storey residential building and another building were declared off-limits due to damage, and some schools were closed as a precaution.
Inspectors were checking buildings for further damage, Mr Manfredi said.
“We are following with the greatest attention all of our structures, and are monitoring all events in real time,” he added.
In all, 11 people sought hospital treatment. One woman was injured after part of a ceiling collapsed, and several others suffered cuts from glass that broke in the quake, Mr Manfredi said.
At least 500,000 people live in the zone most at risk (Alessandro Garofalo/LaPresse via AP)
Seismologists have reported a fresh increase in activity around the Phlegraean Fields over recent weeks. Authorities last summer conducted drills in preparation for a major emergency as the frequency of temblors increased.
The area around the Phlegraean Fields, which encompasses western neighbourhoods of Naples and its suburbs, is both seismically and volcanically active. The surface has been pushed up 1.3 metres (4.3 feet) since 2006, which is higher than prior to the last major event in 1984, but seismologists have emphasised that it is impossible to predict when an eruption or stronger quake might occur.
At least 500,000 people live in the zone most at risk should the volcano erupt. Italy’s national institute for geophysics and volcanology has called for a governmental plan to ensure that structures can withstand a quake of at least a magnitude 5.0.
During the 1984 event, 40,000 residents were evacuated during a period of intense seismic activity as a precaution against a feared eruption that did not occur.