Residents and tourists on the island, which is crowded at the height of the summer season, ran out on to the streets from homes and hospitals. News reports suggested the hardest-hit area was Casamicciola on the northern part of the island. The television reports said the buildings that collapsed appeared to have been inhabited and a number of people were still unaccounted for. Together with the nearby island of Capri, Ischia is a favourite island getaway for the European jetset, famed in particular for its thermal waters. Casamicciola was at the epicentre of an 1883 earthquake that killed more than 2,000 people.

Source: The Guardian August 21, 2017 22:10 UTC