Northern Italy earthquake kills at least 16

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A 5.8-magnitude earthquake struck northern Italy on Tuesday, killing at least 16 people, according to Italian news agencies. One other person is missing.

It was the second earthquake in less than two weeks to strike the region. On May 20, a 6.0-magnitude earthquake killed seven and caused extensive damage to historic buildings.

At least eight victims were in Modena Province, according to Agence France-Press. Two others—including a priest—were said to have been killed when the roof of a cathedral collapsed in Carpi.

The epicenter of Tuesday's earthquake was near Mirandola and Cavezzo outside Bologna, Italy's Institute of Geology said. Dozens of aftershocks—one with a magnitude of 5.6—were also recorded.

"Everything's collapsed," a firefighter in the town of Cavezzo told Corriere della Sera newspaper, according to AFP. "It's chaos—buildings across the town are down."

"The situation is very serious," San Felice sul Panaro Mayor Alberto Silvestri said, according to Reuters. "Some people are stuck under the rubble."

According to CNN, Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti "was in a meeting discussing last week's earthquake" when the new earthquake hit.

[Slideshow: Second deadly quake strikes northern Italy]

"I want to assure everyone that the state will do all that it must do, all that is possible to do, as fast as it can to guarantee the return to normality," Monti said in a statement.

More than 300 people were killed in 2009 after a 6.3-magnitude quake struck near L'Aquila, Italy.

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