Italy on Monday was marking the 40th anniversary of the devastating earthquake in the southern area of Irpinia that claimed close to 3,000 lives in the regions of Campania and Basilicata.
The 6.9-magnitude quake also inured around 8,000 people and made around 300,000 homeless.
The anniversary brings back bitterness about the slowness of the response to the emergency, something then-President Sandro Pertini complained about, and delays in the subsequent reconstruction, which was never fully completed.
Current President Sergio Mattarella on Monday described it as the worst catastrophe in the history of the Italian Republic.
Pope Francis also recalled the disaster on Monday's anniversary.
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