Palermo, Italy, rocked by two earthquakes in the Tyrrhenian Sea, tsunami alert issued

Key Points:

• Palermo and other southern Italian cities experienced a series of earthquakes in the Tyrrhenian Sea on Friday, including a major magnitude 5.7 quake, as reported by the USGS.
• Nearly three dozen earthquakes, mostly weaker, were recorded by Italy’s National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology in the southern Tyrrhenian Sea north of Sicily.
• The strongest quakes included a magnitude 4.9 just before noon, a 5.7 at 12:20 p.m., and a 5.2 around 4 p.m. located about 30 miles west-northwest of Malfa, with epicenters roughly 6 miles below the surface.
• Palermo's mayor is expected to order evacuation of some public buildings, and residents were advised to avoid water activities; meanwhile, Bagheria officials evacuated schools and are inspecting buildings following tsunami alerts issued for coastal areas.
• First responders are actively assessing structural safety in affected areas, emphasizing public safety amid ongoing seismic activity.