Deadly northern Italy earthquake hits heritage sites

[Gerald]

People were jolted out of their beds to seek the relative safety of streets,An earthquake in northern Italy has killed at least four people and caused serious damage to buildings in several towns, local officials say.

The magnitude-six quake struck in the middle of the night, about 35km (22 miles) north of the city of Bologna.

The four victims were killed by falling masonry. Italian media report two more quake-related deaths.

The tremor caused "significant damage to the cultural heritage" of Emilia Romagna region, the government said.

The culture ministry said firefighters and civil protection workers were now examining damaged historic buildings.

It was the worst tremor to hit the country since the L'Aquila quake killed nearly 300 people in central Italy in 2009.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-18135898

Note: 20 May 2012 Last updated at 10:52 GMT