Death toll rises to 250..... EARTHQUAKE IN ITALY

The first quake struck around 3:30 a.m. on Monday, collapsing walls and ceilings of homes and trapping people as they slept. It was followed by at least 11 temblors in what the seismological center described as a "high aftershock rate." The quake was ranked as a magnitude of 5.5 being the most destructive disaster in Italy since 2009, when a quake killed more than 300 people, left 55,000 homeless and devasted the 13th century city of L'Aquilla.

As of now, the death count has rose to 250 people and hundreds still missing.

What caused the quake??

The Apennine mountain belt which runs down the spine of Italy is gradually being stretched in a northeast-southwest direction by tectonic forces at a rate of around 3 mm (0.12 inches) per year,” said Richard Walters, lecturer in Earth Sciences at Durham University .

“This slow stretching causes stress to build up in the earth’s crust, which is then released in earthquakes just like this one,” he said.

Stay tuned for more updates!!!