A 7.2 Earthquake struck in southern Italy during the evening of 23rd November 1980 and killed over 3000 people. One of the reasons for the high number of victims was that the quake struck during the Sunday evening mass. Many of the churches conducting services crumbled when the quake struck.
The earthquake centred in Eboli, a town to the south of Naples. In one nearby village children were preparing for their first communion at the 1000 year old church, the church was demolished in the quake and killed many trapped inside including 26 children.
Throughout the affected area many fires broke out when gas lines were ruptured, firefighting efforts were seriously disrupted due to broken water pipes. Also the roads and railways were suffering from being extensively damaged. Access to the small towns and villages of the mountainous region was difficult and hampered further by a thick blanket of fog in the early hours of the rescue attempt.
In the mountainous region of the Apennines one of the more remote villages had hundreds of seriously injured people needing urgent medical care and evacuation. There was no way for rescue teams to help them due to the damaged roads and the covering of fog prevented helicopters from landing. With limited success urgently needed supplies were dropped into the area as the winter fast approached.
Over the weeks after the earthquake the death toll was over 3000 and an estimated 300,000 would remain homeless during the winter The Italian government issued tents to all those in need of shelter in the more than 200 towns and villages affected by the disaster as building work and repairs began to re-house those most in need.
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Good article, John.
I’m glad I don’t live in an area where we get earthquakes much. I remember a couple of very small ones, but that’s it. 
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