Italy: roughly 200 injured in 5.8-magnitude tremor

At least 17 people were dead, 200 injured and several missing after the large earthquake that hit the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna Tuesday, authorities said. Rescue services said more people are feared dead under the rubble and further aftershocks were predicted. Some 8,000 people have been made homeless, joining 6,000 from a quake in the same region nine days ago that left seven dead. The force of Tuesday's 5.8-magnitude quake suggested it was not an aftershock from May 20, Cabinet Secretary Antonio Catricala' told the Senate. Italy will hold a day of mourning for the victims on Monday, he added. Pope Benedict XVI voiced "great pain and participation" from himself and the Catholic Church and said he was praying for the victims. A huge aftershock hit at 12:56 local time. Shaking the ground for around 30 seconds, it was thought to be even stronger than Tuesday's first shock that struck at 9:00. Seven smaller aftershocks above magnitude 4.0 were also recorded. Experts said the epicenter of the quakes was relatively shallow, originating only several kilometers beneath the Earth's surface, causing serious structural damage to buildings and monuments across the region. "I am convinced we will overcome this moment," said Italian President Giorgio Napolitano. Premier Mario Monti promised that the State would do everything necessary to get the earthquake-hit region back to normal. "I guarantee that the State will do everything that it has to do, that it is possible to do, to ensure this very special, important and productive region for Italy can return to its normal life in a short period of time," Monti said. Officials said two of the people were killed in the town of San Felice sul Panaro, near Modena, and there were also reports that a person was missing there. Another fatality was at Mirandola, which is also in the province of Modena. In Milan many residential buildings and offices were evacuated because of fears they could cave in and people poured out from their homes and workplaces in Bologna for the same reason. Labor Minister Elsa Fornero expressed outrage that so many buildings collapsed, killing and injuring a number of workers on the job. "It's natural that the ground would shake but not that buildings crumble," she said. "In other countries, that does not happen".