An earthquake of 4.4 magnitude, the largest recorded in the area in the last 40 years, shook the province of Campania, in the area of ??the Phlegraean Fields, under which there is a huge volcanic caldera, but it was felt strongly also in the center of the city of Naples causing the contrast between some scenes of panic and those who took it with a certain calmness.
At the moment, no major damage has been reported, except for the fall of some pieces of cornices or some cracks in the municipalities near the epicenter, local authorities reported.
Throughout the day this Monday, several low-intensity tremors were felt until the one at 8:10 p.m., which had a magnitude of 4.4 degrees and occurred three kilometers deep, according to data from the Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology ( INGV)
The tremor was strongly felt in the center of Naples, where residents immediately took to the streets, and in other inland municipalities such as Casavatore, Giugliano and Afragola.
The 4.4 magnitude earthquake that was felt tonight with its epicenter in the Phlegraean Fields may be the strongest in the last forty years, since seismic activity was reactivated in the area.
The previous record dates back to the earthquake of September 27 of last year and on that occasion, the magnitude recorded was 4.2 degrees.
This is an area of ??high seismic activity: the Gulf of Naples is located between the great volcano Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, a caldera with around twenty craters, many under the sea, called that (burning land) by the ancient Greeks.
The Phlegraean Fields and their cities, where half a million people live, are going through a phase of bradyism, a phenomenon that increases the ground level based on the gas and magma accumulated in the depths (since January 2016 the soil of the place, in municipalities such as Pozzuoli, it has risen by 88 centimeters, according to the INGV).
