Residents in Naples camp out after a 4.4 magnitude earthquake hits after weeks of seismic activity

People in Naples were jolted awake early Thursday morning as a 4.4 magnitude earthquake shook the southern Italian city, the largest in 40 years.

According to Italian seismologists, the 4.4 magnitude tremor occurred at 01:25 local time (00:25 GMT) on Thursday at a shallow depth of 3km (two miles) off the coast of Pozzuoli and Bagnoli.

Following an earthquake that rocked buildings and brought rubble falling down, many people in and around Naples, Italy, spent the night on the streets and in their automobiles. Local officials said that fifteen persons were treated at local hospitals.

Naples Mayor Gaetano Manfredi declared a church, a seven-story residential structure, and another building off-limits owing to damage, and certain schools were shuttered as a precaution.

Italy's National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) said that the epicenter was near the seaside town of Pozzuoli, west of the city. Several mild aftershocks were detected around the area.

Naples is located in the Campi Flegrei volcanic basin, which renders the southern Italian region prone to earthquakes.

The INGV announced Thursday morning that there was no imminent risk of an eruption of Mt. Vesuvius or the dormant Campi Flegrei supervolcano.

Power outages were recorded in certain areas of the city, and many families preferred to stay outside or in their vehicles overnight, fearing more earthquakes.

Videos and photographs shared on social media showed automobiles covered in rubble, houses shattered, and inhabitants fleeing to the streets at night.

The most severe earthquake in the Naples region in recent memory, with a magnitude of 6.9 in November 1980, killed over 2,734 people, wounded over 8,800, and devastated hundreds of towns.