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| Rigopiano hotel avalanche: Italian rescuers find no sign of life | Rigopiano hotel avalanche: Italian rescuers find no sign of life |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Rescuers have removed two bodies from a hotel engulfed by an avalanche in central Italy as a desperate search for up to 35 other people continues. | |
| Heavy snow and disruption caused by multiple earthquakes have hindered rescue efforts in the rubble of the Rigopiano hotel, in the Abruzzo region. | Heavy snow and disruption caused by multiple earthquakes have hindered rescue efforts in the rubble of the Rigopiano hotel, in the Abruzzo region. |
| Rescuers say they have heard nothing in the rubble while sniffer dogs are reportedly unable to locate victims. | Rescuers say they have heard nothing in the rubble while sniffer dogs are reportedly unable to locate victims. |
| Two people who were outside the hotel at the time of the avalanche survived. | Two people who were outside the hotel at the time of the avalanche survived. |
| Four earthquakes above magnitude five rocked central Italy on Wednesday, with tremors continuing into the night. | Four earthquakes above magnitude five rocked central Italy on Wednesday, with tremors continuing into the night. |
| The quakes compounded problems resulting from snow and freezing weather, with power lines brought down and villages temporarily cut off. | The quakes compounded problems resulting from snow and freezing weather, with power lines brought down and villages temporarily cut off. |
| Rescue operations are under way across central Italy and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has said the EU is ready to help. | Rescue operations are under way across central Italy and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has said the EU is ready to help. |
| What happened? | What happened? |
| It appears the guests had gathered on the ground floor of the four-star spa hotel, close to the Gran Sasso mountain, to await evacuation following the earthquakes. | It appears the guests had gathered on the ground floor of the four-star spa hotel, close to the Gran Sasso mountain, to await evacuation following the earthquakes. |
| Twenty-two guests and seven staff members were registered as being at the hotel, among them children, but rescuers say the actual number could be 35. | Twenty-two guests and seven staff members were registered as being at the hotel, among them children, but rescuers say the actual number could be 35. |
| The avalanche struck some time between 16:30 (15:30 GMT) and 17:40 on Wednesday, when the first known appeal for help was made. | The avalanche struck some time between 16:30 (15:30 GMT) and 17:40 on Wednesday, when the first known appeal for help was made. |
| It partially brought down the roof and, according to some reports, shifted the building 10m (11 yards) off its foundations. | It partially brought down the roof and, according to some reports, shifted the building 10m (11 yards) off its foundations. |
| A guest who was outside the building at the time raised the alarm with his phone. | A guest who was outside the building at the time raised the alarm with his phone. |
| Giampiero Parete, whose wife and two children are missing, said he had gone to get something from his car: "I was covered by the snow but I managed to get out. The car was not submerged and I waited for the rescuers to arrive." | Giampiero Parete, whose wife and two children are missing, said he had gone to get something from his car: "I was covered by the snow but I managed to get out. The car was not submerged and I waited for the rescuers to arrive." |
| A couple was quoted as telling rescuers in a message: "Help, we're dying of cold." | A couple was quoted as telling rescuers in a message: "Help, we're dying of cold." |
| Mr Parete, who was taken to hospital with a fellow survivor, continued to make phone calls but it reportedly took until 20:00 before his pleas were acted on by the authorities. | Mr Parete, who was taken to hospital with a fellow survivor, continued to make phone calls but it reportedly took until 20:00 before his pleas were acted on by the authorities. |
| Who are the missing? | Who are the missing? |
| A list of 23 names given by La Stampa newspaper suggests that most are Italians but they include a Swiss national and a Romanian. | A list of 23 names given by La Stampa newspaper suggests that most are Italians but they include a Swiss national and a Romanian. |
| Three are children aged six, seven and nine, and the oldest person on the list is a man of 60. | Three are children aged six, seven and nine, and the oldest person on the list is a man of 60. |
| Seven of the missing are from the neighbouring region of Marche. | Seven of the missing are from the neighbouring region of Marche. |
| A couple from Marche who are not recorded in La Stampa's list, Marco Vagnarelli and Paola Tomassini, were last heard from at 16:30 on Wednesday, when Marco contacted his brother Fulvio on WhatsApp, Ansa reports. The avalanche had still not started at that point. | A couple from Marche who are not recorded in La Stampa's list, Marco Vagnarelli and Paola Tomassini, were last heard from at 16:30 on Wednesday, when Marco contacted his brother Fulvio on WhatsApp, Ansa reports. The avalanche had still not started at that point. |
| Marco had told his brother that their departure from the area was being delayed by the bad weather. | Marco had told his brother that their departure from the area was being delayed by the bad weather. |
| Why is the rescue work so difficult? | Why is the rescue work so difficult? |
| Video shows hotel interiors choked with walls of debris and snow. | Video shows hotel interiors choked with walls of debris and snow. |
| "The hotel is almost completely destroyed," Antonio Crocetta, a member of the Alpine rescue squad who was at the scene, told Reuters news agency by phone. | "The hotel is almost completely destroyed," Antonio Crocetta, a member of the Alpine rescue squad who was at the scene, told Reuters news agency by phone. |
| "We've called out but we've heard no replies, no voices. We're digging and looking for people." | "We've called out but we've heard no replies, no voices. We're digging and looking for people." |
| The first rescuers only reached the hotel on skis at 04:30 on Thursday morning. A line of rescue vehicles snaked along an approach road as they waited for it to be cleared. | The first rescuers only reached the hotel on skis at 04:30 on Thursday morning. A line of rescue vehicles snaked along an approach road as they waited for it to be cleared. |
| Earlier on Thursday, Italian media said three bodies had been extracted while, according to an unconfirmed report, a fourth body had been found inside but not yet recovered. | |
| But the fire service said only two bodies had been retrieved. | |
| How widespread is the damage from the quakes? | How widespread is the damage from the quakes? |
| The tremors caused chaos across central Italy, compounding problems caused by heavy snow and freezing weather. | The tremors caused chaos across central Italy, compounding problems caused by heavy snow and freezing weather. |
| Rescue services initially struggled to reach rural communities in regions like Marche. | Rescue services initially struggled to reach rural communities in regions like Marche. |
| One man was killed by a falling roof in Marche and another person swept away by a landslide in Abruzzo. | One man was killed by a falling roof in Marche and another person swept away by a landslide in Abruzzo. |
| People have been evacuated from their homes in some areas. | People have been evacuated from their homes in some areas. |
| An earthquake rocked central Italy on 24 August, killing 298 people die. Another quake in October killed no-one, as most of the population centres had been evacuated. | An earthquake rocked central Italy on 24 August, killing 298 people die. Another quake in October killed no-one, as most of the population centres had been evacuated. |
| Analysis: Why so many quakes in Italy? | Analysis: Why so many quakes in Italy? |
| By Jonathan Amos, BBC science correspondent | By Jonathan Amos, BBC science correspondent |
| The Apennines region saw three magnitude-6 tremors between August and October. A succession of quakes like this is often how the geology works. | The Apennines region saw three magnitude-6 tremors between August and October. A succession of quakes like this is often how the geology works. |
| The big picture is reasonably well understood. Wider tectonic forces in the Earth's crust have led to the Apennines being pulled apart at a rate of roughly 3mm per year - about a 10th of the speed at which your fingernails grow. | The big picture is reasonably well understood. Wider tectonic forces in the Earth's crust have led to the Apennines being pulled apart at a rate of roughly 3mm per year - about a 10th of the speed at which your fingernails grow. |
| But this stress is then spread across a multitude of different faults that cut through the mountains. And this network is fiendishly complicated. | But this stress is then spread across a multitude of different faults that cut through the mountains. And this network is fiendishly complicated. |
| It does now look as though August's event broke two neighbouring faults, starting on one known as the Laga and then jumping across to one called the Vettore. | It does now look as though August's event broke two neighbouring faults, starting on one known as the Laga and then jumping across to one called the Vettore. |
| Then came October with a swathe of quakes that broke the rest of the Vetorre. But the stress, according to the seismologists, wasn't just sent north, it was loaded south as well - south of August's event. | Then came October with a swathe of quakes that broke the rest of the Vetorre. But the stress, according to the seismologists, wasn't just sent north, it was loaded south as well - south of August's event. |
| And it's in this zone that we have now seen a series of quakes in recent days. About a dozen magnitude fours and fives. | And it's in this zone that we have now seen a series of quakes in recent days. About a dozen magnitude fours and fives. |
| Read more from Jonathan | Read more from Jonathan |
| Are you in the area or have you been affected by this incident? Share your experiences by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk. | Are you in the area or have you been affected by this incident? Share your experiences by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk. |
| Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also contact us in the following ways: | Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also contact us in the following ways: |
| Or use the form below | Or use the form below |