Italy marks 17 years since earthquake devastated L'Aquila
April 6, 2026
Wanted in Rome
L'Aquila holds torchlight procession to mark 17 years since earthquake. Italy on Monday marks the 17th anniversary of the 6.3-magnitude earthquake that struck the city of L'Aquila in the early hours of 6 April 2009, killing 309 people. The earthquake left thousands of people homeless and devastated more than 50 villages in the central Abruzzo region, in the deadliest terremoto to hit Italy since the 1980 Irpinia earthquake.
On Sunday night local residents held the traditional torchlit procession through the streets of L'Aquila, and a huge blue beam of light was projected into the sky from the central Piazza Duomo. At 03.32, church bells rang out 309 times, once for each person that died under the rubble. This year's anniversary coincides with Pasquetta, or Easter Monday, a public holiday in Italy. Recovery has been a slow process, with works to reconstruct some buildings in L'Aquila still underway 17 years after the city was devastated by the deadly earthquake. In 2021 Rome's MAXXI Museum of 21st Century Arts opened a new contemporary art museum in L'Aquila, while that same year former Italian premier Mario Draghi inaugurated a memorial park in the city, hailing the victims who perished in the earthquake as 309 angels. In January, L'Aquila succeeded Agrigento as Italian Capital of Culture, and will host hundreds of cultural events throughout the year. Photo ANSA
Wanted in Rome
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