Firefighters search through debris in Arquata, central Italy, yesterday following the earthquake.
Photo Credit: ANSA via AP / Angelo Carconi

Italian Canadians fundraising for earthquake aftermath

Italian Canadians are networking again, to collect money to send to the country to aid in the aftermath of yesterday’s earthquake. The 6.2 earthquake struck just after 3:30 a.m. Wednesday. Three towns in central Italy were leveled.

“Long and ugly”

The quake was described by a senior survivor, a man who said he’d lived through many earthquakes, as “long and ugly”.

One Canadian is confirmed dead as a result of the quake but the person’s identity has not yet been made public.

Today as rescue crews raced against time looking for survivors there were two powerful aftershocks registering at over 5 points on the scale.

“Some of those towns, they go back thousands of years”

The death toll continues to rise, climbing above 250 so far and the country is once again anguished over what it can do to secure its towns and cities, new and old, built on seismic land.

Bob Sacco, president of the National Federation of Canadian Italian Business and Professional Associations, in an interview in the Globe and Mail newspaper yesterday, said his organization is looking at options to support recovery efforts.

“I got a lot of calls from our chapters in Montreal and various chapters across Canada that basically said, ‘How can we help?’ The first step is really to figure out who the right people are to have an idea and do an effective plan,” he said.

“Some of those towns, they go back thousands of years with churches and architects. That’s part of that rebuilding process – how you recapture what’s lost,” he said. “But first of all you have to make sure everybody’s safe.”

Sacco was involved with the Canadian fundraising following the powerful 2009 earthquake in Italy’s Abruzzo region in which more than 300 people were killed.

The Abruzzo Earthquake Relief Fund raised $2 million (Cdn) for a new medical research facility at the University of L’Aquila. Aquila was one of the towns hardest hit by that earthquake. Another $400,000 (Cdn) was donated to the Red Cross.

Pino Asaro is president of the National Congress of Italian Canadians. He told CBC News he’d been in contact with the Italian consul and different levels of government to organize fundraising.

He said, however, nothing will be formalized until there’s a confirmed death toll and a clearer assessment of the damage.

The Canadian Red Cross is now collecting donations for this recent tragedy.

Categories: Uncategorized
Tags: , , ,

Do you want to report an error or a typo? Click here!

For reasons beyond our control, and for an undetermined period of time, our comment section is now closed. However, our social networks remain open to your contributions.