This photo shows the level of destruction of Italy earthquake
UPDATE: Aug. 25, 2016, 8:18 a.m. BST Death toll is now 247 dead: 190 in Rieti province and 57 in Ascoli Piceno province, according to Italy Civil Protection
UPDATE Aug. 24 10:29 a.m. PT: Italian Premier Matteo Renzi has said the death toll has risen to 120.
A 6.2-magnitude earthquake has struck central Italy leaving several people dead and dozens trapped under rubble.
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The hilltop town of Amatrice, near the quake's epicentre, was heavily damaged with Sergio Pirozzi, the mayor, saying "half of the town is gone" in an interview with Italian news agency ANSA.
This aerial photo from Italy's Fire Department shows the level of destruction in the town, which is in the Rieti province:
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Footage later released by the state police shows a similar scene of desctruction in the region:
The main street through the town has been devastated and emergency workers are working to pull people alive from the rubble. Rocks and metal tumbled onto the streets and dazed residents huddled in piazzas as some 39 aftershocks jolted the region into the early morning hours, some as strong as 5.1.
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"There are people under the rubble. There's been a landslide and a bridge might collapse," Pirozzi told RAI. He later added that he fears "dozens of victims" trapped under the rubble.
"The situation is dramatic. There are so many dead I cannot make an estimate," he said. "We have already extracted several dead bodies but we do not know how many there are there below."
The earthquake killed dozens and left hundreds others trapped under rubble, according to Italian officials.
The Associated Press contributed reporting.
