The 6.2 quake struck at 1.36 am on Wednesday, 65 miles north east of Rome.
The epicentre was in Norcia, near Perugia, in mountainous central Italy, but tremors were felt as far away as Rome.
Italy declared a state of emergency in the regions worst hit by Wednesday’s earthquake as hopes of finding more survivors fade and more than 265 people are now known to have died and 400 were injured in the disaster.
