At 03:32 CEST on April 6, 2009, a major earthquake rocked the city of L'Aquila and the surrounding villages, in the center of Italy.

297 people were killed in those 20 seconds, more than a thousand were injured and around 70,000 were left homeless.

Many historic buildings collapsed in the centre of the city. This panorama was taken two and a half months after, at Piazza della Repubblica, in front of the Prefecture, heavily damaged by the earthquake.

The reconstruction of the city will probably take more than a decade.