On-the-spot: scenes of devastation | Video: survivors' tales | Pictures: horror in L'Aquila | In depth: Italy's earthquake history | Expert: geology puts country at risk | Scientist 'warned of earthquake'

More than 150 people are now feared to have died in the massive earthquake that struck the city of L'Aquila in the mountainous Abruzzo region of Italy early this morning.

Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian Prime Minister, said that a further 1,500 people had been wounded and an as yet unknown number – possibly as many as 50,000 – left homeless.

He urged residents to stay away from their damaged homes and to visit friends or relatives while teams of surveyors worked out which buildings were safe.

Expert View

I found a scene of devastation - a jewel of medieval Italy has collapsed

Richard Owen in L'Aquila

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Times Archive

• 1915: Victims of the earthquake in the Abruzzi

• Earthquake between Rome and Aquila

• Italian towns in ruins

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• Nothing to see but devastation in L'Aquila after earthquake

• Why Italy's geology puts it at risk of quakes

Multimedia

• IN PICTURES: the Italian earthquake

• VIDEO: survivors' tales

Rescue workers helped by ordinary citizens have already succeeded in pulling a number of survivors from the rubble, crawling under concrete slabs and using their bare hands to haul away chunks of debris. One woman was stretchered away from the ruins of her four-storey home, but as many as 20 more people were feared trapped in the same building.

Francesco Rossi, the head of the Italian Red Cross, said that thousands of volunteers had flooded to help the rescue efforts all over the region. "We are in all the villages. We need more volunteers but they are arriving by the hour from Rome and Milan and other places," said Mr Rossi.

"We are working without stopping for breath. We will work through the night and for the next 48 hours without stop. We believe there may be hundreds of people still alive underneath."

Around 15,000 structures have been damaged by the tremors, including the city's main hospital, forcing health services to send the most severely wounded to other hospitals.

Several of L'Aquila's medieval churches and many of its ancient buildings have also been damaged, and houses and apartment blocks have been rendered unsafe.

Mr Berlusconi cancelled a business summit in Moscow to fly to the stricken city of L'Aquila, and has declared a state of emergency that will allow him to divert federal funds to Abruzzo.

"I don't think there is any building that has not suffered," said Mr Berlusconi.

"The message to people is not to stay in damaged buildings and houses. We particularly invite them to take their children and families and to see whether they can go somewhere else and perhaps stay with friends or relatives for a few days. Why? Because nobody can say for certain that there is not going to be another earthquake in the next few hours and days."

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