10-Year-Old Girl In Italy Rescued From Rubble After Wednesday’s Fatal Earthquake

After 17 hours of attempts by firefighters to rescue 10-year-old Giulia from a stockpile of rubble after Italy’s earthquake on Wednesday, she was finally freed, ABC News reports.

It has been a bittersweet race by rescue workers to locate children, families, and other potential survivors trapped underneath the ruins of the small, historic town of Pescara del Tronto. However, workers have remained committed to finding and accounting for all of the town’s known residents.

Lorenzo Botti, a spokesperson for the team, affirmed their commitment to rescue efforts with the Associated Press, saying, “We will work relentlessly until the last person is found, and make sure no one is trapped.”

And the team did just that when they found little Giulia trapped beneath a flattened building hit by the earthquake. One of its members heard a noise and noticed her legs sticking out from the rubble.

According to ABC News, the rescue worker said, “You can hear something under here. Quiet, quiet.”

The 10-year-old’s heroic rescue was filmed. Viewers can witness the crowd cheering while firefighters pull her body from the mess and whisk her away as she was finally freed on Thursday morning.

https://youtu.be/lZYOArsvq80

Rescue efforts in Pescara del Tronto are still ongoing as the team searches for three people believed to be in a hard-to-reach area.

The spokesperson for the firefighters, Danilo Dionisi, reported to the Associated Press, “The dogs from our dog rescue unit make us think there could be something.”

Pescara del Tronto is located nearly 100 miles northeast of Rome and was among the hardest hit by the quake and tremors; others include the small towns of Amatrice and Accumoli. As of Thursday afternoon, the civil protection agency of Italy reported the death toll rose to 250, and at least 365 survivors have been hospitalized. The majority of the fatalities caused by the earthquake and subsequent tremors were in Amatrice, where 184 were found dead.

Emergency services have set up temporary housing for the newly homeless in tent cities around the towns and have housed roughly 1,200 people overnight. Amatrice has also used its sports facility to house 50 seniors and children.

Civil protection volunteer Tiziano De Carolis expressed compassion for the young and elderly.

“It’s not easy for them. They have lost everything: the work of an entire life, like those who have a business, a shop, a pharmacy, a grocery store.”

Although this is not the first earthquake disaster in Italy, many believe it is also not the last for the area. Based on reports by the Associated Press, Italy has “the highest seismic hazard rate in Western Europe.” Many are taken aback by the breathtaking historical beauty of their buildings, leaving owners to disregard the fact that most of their structures do not comply with the country’s anti-seismic building codes. To add to the problems, many new buildings are not up to code either.

Sergio Rizzo, a columnist for Milan’s daily newspaper, the Corriere della Sera, claims the country may still have much to learn.

“In a country where in the past 40 years there have been at least eight devastating earthquakes…the only lesson we have learned is to save lives after the fact. We are far behind in the other lessons.”

While Rizzo’s points may be important for future prevention, today’s focus is saving lives.

If you would like to take part in rescue efforts for the victims of the Italian earthquake, like 10-year-old Giulia, many organizations are accepting donations at this time, including the Italian Red Cross, National Italian American Foundation, and others, the Inquisitr reports.

Check back often for updates on the earthquake disaster in Italy.

[Photo by Gregorio Borgia/AP Images]