Vladimir Putin offers help to Italy in coping with aftermath of disaster

Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed his condolences to Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi over the human losses as a result of a devastating earthquake in the country’s central regions, reports TASS.

Vladimir Putin said in a telegram of condolence that "Russia shares the grief of the friendly Italian people" and expressed readiness "to render the necessary assistance in coping with the aftermath of this disaster." He also conveyed words of sympathy and support to the families and friends of those killed and wished a speedy recovery to the injured.



As it was reported by Russkiy Mir website, the first 6.0-magnitude temblor was fixed at 03:36 am local time. It was followed by another temblor. The earthquake hit a big area of the Apennines. Much of the town of Amatrice was reduced to rubble and a family of four were feared dead nearby in Accumoli. Many of the dead were in the village of Pescara del Tronto which was levelled to the ground and there were fears the number could rise. According to the latest data, the earthquake left at least 20 people dead.

Minister of Emergency Situations Vladimir Puchkov has offered hands-on assistance to Rome reminding about the fact that Russian emergency response groups have gained a rich experience carrying out rescue operations in areas affected by natural disasters. They have all the required up-to-date equipment used for human rescue and debris clearance.