Hero dogs save children from Italy earthquake rubble

In the days following Italy's 6.2 magnitude earthquake, frantic rescue attempts have taken place in the towns hardest hit. Crews have been digging through the rubble of collapsed buildings trying to find survivors of the quake that has left at least 267 people dead.

In one town, they've had a four-legged addition to the team to help them.

Leo, the black labrador, helped locate an eight-year-old girl named Georgia under the rubble in Pescara del Tronto, a village that was destroyed by the quake. Georgia had been trapped for 16 hours in the ruins of her family home.

In a video uploaded to Twitter two officers, Matteo and Liborio from Pescara, explained how the dog helped them. "This is Leo, the four-and-a-half-year-old labrador from the search and rescue team of Pescara who found little Georgia yesterday,” Matteo said.

"Yesterday we were given the information that under a two-story collapsed house in Pescara del Tronto there were two missing girls. Immediately we went to the location and Leo, in less than 40 seconds, gave us a strong signal. With our colleagues from the Reparto Mobile Senigallia and the firemen, we dug with our bare hands for nine hours, and at the end we were able to find the girl."

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Leo isn't the only helpful dog in Italy this week.

A German Shepherd named Sarotti also helped rescuers find a 10-year-old girl in Amatrice, locating her in the rubble. Officers spotted her pajamas after digging in a spot indicated by the dog.

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More than 5,000 people are involved in the rescue effort following the earthquake, and Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has pledged €50 million ($56 million) in funds for rebuilding.

Seach teams have asked locals to disable their Wi-Fi to help communications as they continue to search for survivors.