Monday 13 April 2009

Italy quake survivors mark Easter

ROME, April 9 (Xinhua) -- The death toll from the earthquake in central Italy's Abruzzo region rose to 287 on Thursday, Italian media reported. Days after the 5.8 magnitude earthquake on Monday, aftershocks continued to jolt the region, with 71 seismic events recorded Wednesday night, Abruzzo Governor Gianni Chiodi said. There had been a total of 1,000 aftershocks since the quake struck the region on Monday, he said.

Premier Silvio Berlusconi said earlier on Thursday it was still too early to estimate the costs of rebuilding the quake-stricken region of Abruzzo, but this would likely require "several billion euros." Meanwhile, the government has approved a package of emergency measures to ease financial pressures on the 29,000 people left homeless by the earthquake.

According to the plan, families will receive up to 400 euros a month to help with rent while business owners, including farmers, who have had to cease activity because of the quake will receive a monthly allowance of 800 euros.

Electricity and gas bills for the stricken areas have been suspended for two months and insurance contributions have also been put on hold, while survivors will be able to renegotiate mortgages with banks. Economy Minister Giulio Tremonti said government aid to deal with the disaster had been increased to 100 million euros.

The government also approved the deployment of 700 troops to patrol the quake-hit areas alongside police to prevent looting. Some 19,000 survivors from the quake are currently housed in tent camps, while 10,000 others are allowed to live in hotels paid by the state.

The government also approved the deployment of 700 troops to patrol the quake-hit areas alongside police to prevent looting. Some 19,000 survivors from the quake are currently housed in tent camps, while 10,000 others are allowed to live in hotels paid by the state.

Photographs http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/04/the_laquila_earthquake.html

Warning given http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article6046585.ece

Images http://www.flickr.com/photos/mirkosim/

BBC NEWS | World | Europe | Italy quake survivors mark Easter

Water cut off in Mexican capital

 A city worker delivers a resident's weekly water supply in a poor part of Mexico City, 9 April

Mexico City officials have shut down a main pipeline providing fresh water to millions of residents because reserves have fallen to record low levels.

BBC NEWS | World | Americas | Country profiles | Water cut off in Mexican capital

Global Water Crisis // Current

water bubbles 

Current.com is our online home for viewer influenced and created content. Members of our community contribute links to news stories, blog posts, videos, and other influential content they find on the Internet. Through their contributions and votes, VC2 uploads, and VCAMs, our community plays an influential role helping us determine what gets aired on Current TV

Follow 

GLOBAL WATER CRISIS

Global Water Crisis // Current

Investing in water: why water is blue gold - MoneyWeek

water bubbles 

Anyone unfortunate enough to have been caught by this year’s record-breaking UK floods might wonder how a lack of water could possibly be an imminent global problem. But away from our damp corner of the planet, things are rather different. Since 1950, the world’s population has doubled but the amount of fresh water available hasn’t actually budged at all. The result? According to the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), one-third of the world’s population is short of water. What’s worse, this is a point that the planet was not expected to reach, according to previous reports, until 2025, implying that the situation is deteriorating – fast

Investing in water: why water is blue gold - MoneyWeek