Earthquake hits Rome as the city emerges from lockdown

File photo: The last major earthquake to strike Italy hit in Umbria region in 2016 with a magnitude of 6.2, killing 299 people and leaving hundreds injured (DM)

A mild earthquake shook Rome on Monday morning as the city tries to adjust to life following coronavirus lockdown.  Â

The quake had a magnitude of 3.3 and struck at 5.03am with an epicentre in Fonte Nuova, a small town around 10 miles outside the capital. Â

Firefighters said they had received numerous inquiries from people who had been shaken awake, but no reports of damage or injuries. Â

Residents reported hearing a loud roaring noise for around 30 seconds just before the shaking started, sending people scrambling into the streets. Â

‘People woke up, screams of fright were heard from our building,’ a man identified only as Fayruj told Italian news site AGI. Â

Others said they had been thrown out of bed by the shaking, with panic spreading quickly through a city already on edge over coronavirus. In 2016, a major earthquake with a magnitude of 6.2 struck the Umbria region of central Italy, killing 299 people and injuring hundreds more.Â