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🇮🇹 Italy /Disasters & Emergencies

Amatrice Remembers Earthquake Victims with Silent Torchlight Procession and Bell Tolls

From ANSA · () Italian

Translated from Italian, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News From a news agency Context piece
  • Amatrice, Italy, marked the tenth anniversary of the devastating 2016 earthquake with a silent torchlight procession.
  • 239 bell tolls honored each victim who perished in the magnitude 6 earthquake that nearly destroyed the town.
  • Residents gathered to remember the lost and reaffirm their commitment to rebuilding and revitalizing their historic community.

Amatrice, a town in Italy's Rieti province, observed the tenth anniversary of the catastrophic earthquake that struck on August 24, 2016. A silent torchlight procession and 239 bell tolls, one for each victim, marked the solemn occasion.

For the tenth time... we want to be here simply to say that we are here, we are here for those who are no longer here, we are here for those who are still here, and we are here for this land that has the right to be reborn and to shine again with its own light, for its beauty, for its history, and for its tradition, and not because it is a victim of an earthquake.

— Voices during the vigilSpoken during the torchlight procession to reaffirm the community's commitment to rebuilding and honoring the past.

Ten years ago, a magnitude 6 earthquake struck shortly after 3:36 a.m., reducing much of Amatrice to rubble. The then-mayor, Sergio Pirozzi, famously described the scene, stating, "Amatrice no longer exists." Today, the town, nestled in the shadow of the Laga Mountains, is tenaciously working to rise from its ruins.

During the vigil, voices alternated at the microphone, emphasizing their presence: "For the tenth time... we want to be here simply to say that we are here, we are here for those who are no longer here, we are here for those who are still here, and we are here for this land that has the right to be reborn and to shine again with its own light, for its beauty, for its history, and for its tradition, and not because it is a victim of an earthquake."

Amatrice no longer exists.

— Sergio PirozziThe then-mayor's immediate description of the devastation following the 2016 earthquake.

Citizens and victims' families walked with torches through the 'ground zero' area, a path circling the miraculously standing civic tower. This route signifies the boundary between the old and the new Amatrice, a town slowly being reborn. The torches symbolized the need for light amidst the darkness cast by the earthquake. While the night was one of intimate remembrance and silence, official celebrations and a mass led by Cardinal Zuppi, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in attendance, were scheduled for later.

The torches... are representing the need for light in the darkness in which the earthquake event has thrown this community.

— Red Cross volunteerRead during the vigil, explaining the symbolism of the torchlight procession.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ANSA in Italian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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