The
2009 L'Aquila earthquake occurred in the region of
Abruzzo, in central Italy. The main shock occurred at 03:32 CEST (01:32
UTC) on 6 April 2009, and was rated 5.8 or 5.9 on the
Richter magnitude scale and 6.3 on the
moment magnitude scale; its
epicentre was near
L'Aquila, the capital of Abruzzo, which together with surrounding villages suffered most damage. There have been several thousand
foreshocks and
aftershocks since December 2008, more than thirty of which had a Richter magnitude greater than 3.5.