ITALY – One whole month on from the earthquake that devastated Amatrice, most of the residents are just starting to come to terms with the loss, as authorities rush to move the last people out of the temporary tent camp and into local hotels or other accommodation.
However, for one family at least, there has been some positive news.
A cat, whose name is Rocco, was rescued alive from the rubble and reunited with his owners, having spent 32 days trapped beneath the ruins.
The fire service shared the news on all of their social media accounts of Sunday evening. “Happy owners!” they added.
Rocco is not the only ‘miracle pet’ to survive the quake in the central Italian town. Another cat, whose name is Pietro, was saved after 16 days, having survived on rainwater alone.
A third lucky feline, whose name is Gioia, survived five days in the ruins of her home before being rescued, and a golden retriever called Romeo was pulled from the rubble of Italy’s earthquake more than nine days after he was given up for dead.
One month on from the quake, which killed almost 300 people and left around 2,500 homeless, Italian Prime Minister Renzi has promised to rebuild the damaged towns “so they are as beautiful, more beautiful than before.”
The quake, which shook at a magnitude of 6.0 to 6.2, hit central Italy in the early hours of August 24th, devastating villages in the Lazio, Marches, Umbria and Abruzzo regions and causing at least four billion euros ($4.48 billion) worth of damage, Renzi noted.
The tent camps will be replaced within the next seven months or so with wooden houses as reconstruction work on the hamlets and towns is carried out, while local businesses will re-open where possible in containers, he went on to assure.
NEVER GIVE UP!
