Magnitude 3 measured

Residents felt earthquake around Vesuvius in Naples

The Vesuvius volcano in Naples (archive image)(Bild: AFP)

A magnitude 3 earthquake occurred in the vicinity of the Vesuvius volcano on Monday evening. It was also felt in several districts of Naples. No injuries or major damage were initially reported.

Residents of the southern Italian city reported tremors that lasted several minutes. According to the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology, the epicenter was on the slopes of the volcano, in a densely populated area not far from Naples in the east. There was initially no information about casualties or major damage. The earthquake was registered at a depth of 2.9 kilometers.

Mount Vesuvius is 1281 meters high and the local mountain of the city, which has more than 900,000 inhabitants. A smaller quake with a magnitude of 1.4 had already been recorded on Saturday evening.

Last eruption 80 years ago
The last eruption of the volcano was almost exactly 80 years ago to the day: it began on March 18, 1944 and lasted ten days. At that time, 26 people lost their lives and 10,000 others were evacuated. In 79 AD, ash, mud and lava buried the ancient city of Pompeii after several eruptions of Mount Vesuvius. Today, the site is one of the most visited sights in Italy.