A 4.9-magnitude earthquake rocked Milan and much of northern Italy early on Wednesday, but there were no immediate reports of injuries or major damage.
Tremors were also felt in Turin, Verona and other parts of Veneto in Tuscany,and Valle d'Aosta and Liguria region around Genoa.
Several schools were evacuated as a precautionary measure in Milan and Liguria, where some local authority offices were also cleared of staff.
Quoting Italy's Institute of Geophysics, the ANSA news agency reported that the epicenter of the quake, which struck soon after 09.00 local time, was in the Reggio Emilia province.
Italy is prone to seismic activity and 308 people were killed in a devastating earthquake that struck the city of L'Aquila and the central region Abruzzo in April 2009.
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