Naples rocked by biggest earthquake in 40 years sending people running into streets as ‘city awoken by huge roar’

NAPLES has been hit by its biggest earthquake in four decades with people left fleeing for cover after being "awoken by a huge roar".

Shocking footage shows how cars and homes were resigned to ruins after a devastating 4.4 magnitude tremor rocked the city overnight, according to Italian seismologists.

The power supply in parts of Naples were also severally disrupted just after 1am local time on Thursday when the first quake struck.

One person was left injured in the neighbouring town of Pozzuoli, which was sat close in the quake's epicentre.

Its centre was recorded at a depth of two kilometers beneath the seaside region, according to the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV).

The woman had to be pulled from the rubble of a collapsed house by rushing emergency services.

In nearby Bagnoli, rescuers were also deployed to free people who were trapped in their homes.

Residents were forced to climb out of their windows to escape on to the rubble-filled streets below, according to news agency ANSA. 

The largest in a series of tremors was followed by a "huge roar", reported local media.

The powerful quake lasted around 20 seconds and sent much of the sleeping city and huge parts of the nearby region running to safety.

Several areas of the Campania region were also affected, Italian media reported.

At least two more weaker aftershocks were later reported in Naples.

In May of last year, another 4.4 magnitude earthquake struck a similar area in Italy.

Its epicentre was recorded in the Phlegraean Fields area which is home to a huge active volcanic crater. 

Hundreds of residents and the inmates of a women’s prison in Pozzuoli were forced to evacuate as schools in the region were shut down.

In October 2023, a horror earthquake struck Naples' volcanic region of Campi Flegrei.

The 4.0-magnitude quake caused panic among locals who fled to the streets with the epicentre located at a depth of around two miles between Naples and Pozzuoli, according to INGV.

Just a week earlier, a 4.2-magnitude quake was also recorded in the region.