Italian earthquake death toll is over 250 - minister
Italy`s emergency services continued to find survivors following the devastating quake in central Italy, as the country`s economic development minister said the death toll had exceeded 250 on Wednesday.
Claudio Scajola made the announcement at an economic forum in Yekaterinburg.
About 1,500 people were injured in the quake, which hit the mountainous region of Abruzzo early Monday and measured 5.8 on the Richter scale.
Some 70,000 people in L`Aquila near the epicenter fled their homes following the quake.
Rescuers in L`Aquila pulled a 20-year-old woman out of rubble alive late on Tuesday, 42 hours after the quake struck the Italian city. Eleonora Calesini was hospitalized with injuries to her arms and legs.
An elderly woman, who said she had spent 30 hours crocheting under the remains of her house, and a 24-year-old student were also saved alive from rubble in L`Aquila. A search for others is continuing.
Some 15 people are reported as missing, while aftershocks continue to hit the region, hampering rescue efforts.
Thousands of buildings have been destroyed and around 15,000 left homeless, the country`s prime minister said.
Silvio Berlusconi, who canceled a two-day visit to Russia to deal with the tragedy, has turned down offers of aid from other countries. He also said the government had allocated 30 billion euros ($40 billion) to deal with the consequences of the earthquake.
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