L'AQUILA, Italy - A powerful earthquake in mountainous central Italy knocked down whole blocks of buildings early Monday as residents slept, killing at least 50 people and trapping many more, officials said. Thousands were homeless.
The earthquake's epicenter was about 70 miles northeast of Rome near the medieval city of L'Aquila. It struck at 3:32 a.m. local time in a quake-prone region that has had at least nine smaller jolts since the beginning of April. The U.S. Geological Survey said Monday's quake was magnitude 6.3, but Italy's National Institute of Geophysics put it at 5.8.
Interior Minister Roberto Moroni, arriving in L'Aquila hours after the quake, said 50 people had been killed.
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