Live: At least 38 dead in central Italy earthquake

• Earthquake of magnitude 6.2 struck at 3:36am
• Amatrice and Accumuli, in Lazio, and Arquata and Pescara del Tronto, in Marche, worst affected
• Epicentre in Norcia, near Perugia.
• Lazio region hit the hardest
• Strong aftershocks.
• Tremors felt in Rome.
• Death toll confirmed so far at 38.
• People in the area asked to give blood.
• Hospital in Amatrice collapsed

The quake occurred at 3.36am, in Norcia, a town south of Perugia, Umbria, and has devastated the towns of Amatrice and Accumuli in the northern Lazio region along with Arquata and Pescara del Tronto, in the eastern region of Marche.

14.31 - 4.9 magnitude aftershock felt in Arquata del Tronto, Ansa reported, causing more damage.

13.07 - Tent camps at Accumuli and Amatrice

Two tent camps are being set up by the Civil Protection agency in Accumuli and Amatrice, provided by Lazio's regional authorities. Each with space for 250 people, while further supplies are ready to be transported if needed.

12:47 – ‘35 dead in Amatrice alone’

With the official death toll still at 38, authorities say there are at least 35 people dead in Amatrice alone.

La Repubblica states authorities have amassed 14 bodies at a residential courtyard in the north of the town and a further 21 at a local school.

Three more bodies have been found by rescue teams in Amatrice in the last hour, while an 80-year-old woman has been pulled from the rubble alive.

12:42 - Amatriciana for Amatrice?

Restaurants across Italy are being called upon to donate €1 from sales of the famed amatriciana pasta dish, which was invented in Amatrice, to the Red Cross in order to help earthquake victims.

12:37 - 69 of the injured transferred to Rome

According to Lazio's authorities, 69 of those hurt in the earthquake were moved to Rome's hospitals. Nineteen who were in a serious condition were transported by helicopter

12:29 - Renzi to visit hardest hit areas

Italian Prime Minister, Matteo Renzi, has promised to visit the most severely affected areas later on Wednesday.

"No one will be left alone; no family, no village. This is a moment for action," the Italian Prime Minister told journalists.

"In difficult moments, Italy knows how to act."

He thanked the voluntary organizations which mobilized swiftly and were able to save lots of people who had been trapped in the wreckage of their homes.

12:28 – Tents arrive in Amatrice for refugees of disaster.

Tents have been brought into Amatrice so that those whose homes have been damaged have somewhere to spend the night.

Roads in and out the town have been badly affected by the quake and are closed to traffic, except for emergency services. Many residents will be bedding down in a makeshift camp in Amatrice tonight.

12.18 - Lazio hardest hit

Of the 38 confirmed victims, 10 are from Arquata and Pescara del Tronto in the Marche region, while 28 are from the towns of Amatrice and Accumoli, in northern Lazio.

12.16 - 'Let's help Amatrice'

A stand has been set up in Rieti to collect goods for the earthquake victims, under the slogan Aiutiamo Amatrice (Let's help Amatrice). Charities are asking for food, including tinned goods, pasta, and long-life milk; baby products, and blankets. Collections were also taking place in other towns and cities, including Rome.

12.15 - The president of Italy’s Olympic Committee promises a minute’s silence for victims.

Giovanni Malagò announced there would be “a minute’s silence at all sporting events until the end of the week".

“Sport will show its solidarity with the victims. We are always at your side,” Malagò added.

12.12 - Italian ministry promises €234 million for  the earthquake relief effort.

“The fund for national emergencies has made €234 million available, which will be used to meet immediate needs,” read a note from Paola De Micheli, undersecretary for Italy’s Ministry of Economy and Finance.

12.05 - Several European and foreign leaders have offered their solidarity with Italy, including Germany’s Angela Merkel, France’s Francois Hollande and the Netherlands’ Mark Rutte.

12.00 - Many of those injured are being transferred to L'Aquila, the site of another deadly earthquake in 2009, where the hospital has made an extra 60 beds available, La Repubblica reported.

11.55 - Italy's civil protection unit the first official death toll is 38.

"There are still so many people under masonry, so many missing," said Immacolata Postiglione, the head of the unit's emergency department.

11.45 -  A dramatic video has emerged of a woman trapped under rubble in Capodaqua, near Ascoli Piceno, Marche.

The video, uploaded to YouReporter.it, shows rescue workers talking to the woman in a bid to keep her calm as they try to figure out a way of removing the mass of rubble from on top of her.

11.38 - European Parliament president, Martin Schulz, has tweeted his condolences.

11.37 - Italy's Red Cross has sent teams to provide psychological support and a field kitchen to victims of the earthquake.

11.26 - Amatrice's hospital has collapsed, Corriere reported

Amatrice's hospital is a small building located outside the town centre but close to the earthquake's epicentre, and was looking after 15 patients at the time of the quake.

11.23 - Patients in Amatrice's hospital have been moved into the square because the building is no longer safe.

11.20 - Poignant image captures moment of disaster in Amatrice.

An image of the town’s clock tower frozen at 3.40am, the time the earthquake devastated the town, has been uploaded to citizen journalism website YouReporter.it

11.13 - Accumoli's mayor, Stefano Petrucci, said 2,500 people have been evacuated around the town, according to Rai News.

11.04 - Italy’s President, Sergio Mattarella calls for solidarity.

“The whole country must come together in solidarity to help the communities affected,” he wrote in a statement.

Mattarella praised the work of the country’s rescue services, saying that his thoughts went out to the victims of the quake, “which has hit such a large geographical area of our country.

“It will be necessary to ensure the destroyed areas are rebuilt as soon as possible, so that life can return to normal,” he added.

10.51 - Engineers raise questions over building safety.

“In Italy, in real estate purchase agreements, buildings legally require an energy certificate, but do not require stability certificates, as though it was less important,” Armando Zambrano, president of Italy’s National Council of Engineers, told Rai Radio.

10.44 -

Stefano Petrucci, mayor of Accumoli, a town of 635, has said that after walking through the town, none of the houses seemed habitable anymore. “We will need tents for the whole population,” he said, according to La Stampa.

 10.40 - Rescue workers are still finding people alive under the rubble.

In Accumoli, Lazio, a 65-year-old-man has been extracted from under a collapsed building, while two children have so far been found in Pescara del Tronto, Marche.

Across the affected area, many volunteer workers have joined in the search and are searching through the rubble for friends and neighbours with their bare hands.

10.30 - Amatrice Mayor, Sergio Pirozzi, says he expects the death toll will rise substantially.

“There are tens of victims, many of them still under the rubble,” he told news agency Ansa. “We are preparing a place where we can put the bodies.”

The population of Amatrice is around 2,646.

10.25 - Russian embassy says no Russians hurt in Italy earthquake - Interfax

10.22 - Facebook has launched its 'safety check' feature for the earthquake.

A reminder that civil protection has activated a hotline - 800 840 840 for information.

10.12 - At least 21 people are reported to be dead, although Fabrizio Curcio, the chief of Italy's civil protection, has urged caution in reporting the death toll.

"Concerning the numbers I ask for patience and respect: we need to be sure of the numbers when we talk about victims," Curcio told state broadcaster Rai.

"As far as we know rescue teams have reached all the main areas," he continued.

"This morning there were problems in some villages, but now they have arrived, some were even flown in by helicopter, but there are small hamlets and there may be some gaps that need monitoring: we are conducting a census of the various hamlets."

10.05 - Authorities have asked people to avoid all unnecessary travel which could block rescue workers and emergency services from getting to the affected areas.

According to Rai News, there was a particularly high number of tourists visiting Amatrice, one of the Lazio towns worse affect, this week for the Sagra dell'Amatriciana, a festival to celebrate their regional pasta dish which was due to take place this weekend.

It is not yet known if any foreign nationals are among the dead.

Pope Francis has thanked rescuers and volunteers and asked Catholics to pray for the victims.

The affected area. Photo: Google Maps