Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi on Tuesday handed over the keys of the first permanent houses for those left homeless by a devastating earthquake that killed hundreds of people.
More than five months after the massive quake rocked the central Abruzzo region, Berlusconi arrived with great fanfare in the shattered village of Onna, outside the main town of L'Aquila, to deliver 94 new homes to survivors.
The small village was reduced to rubble by the quake, and it killed 41 people out of a population of just 300.
Almost 300 people lost their lives in the historic city of L'Aquila and across the region when the quake hit on April 6.
The small houses delivered Tuesday were ready to use, already equipped with letter boxes and flat-screen televisions, and even smaller items such as toothpaste and bottles of olive oil were included.
"Here are the keys and I hope that this house will become a love nest for you in your new life," declared Berlusconi, as he handed over one of the houses to a young couple.
The ceremony took place in the full glare of the media spotlight, with photographers and television crews attending in force and the area meticulously cleaned and prepared for the event.
Berlusconi and others attending the ceremony also placed a wreath on a tree, which was the only one in the village to survive the quake. A plaque has been placed on it with the names of those killed in Onna by the earthquake.
"All the families will be able to sleep here and the tents will be taken down," said public safety chief Guido Bertolaso.
Despite the gift from the state — which included a personal message from Berlusconi slipped into the post boxes of the new homes — many remain deeply scarred by the tragedy and see a long road to recovery ahead.
"It will be difficult for us to find any joy in life again," said local journalist Giustino Parisse, who lost two children in the earthquake.
Regaining such happiness would only occur "on the day I see my village reconstructed," he added.
One man hit out at the high-profile ceremony to deliver the new houses as "all lies", and said his housing needs in the wake of the tremor had not been adequately dealt with.
"What you see here is all lies," said the man in his 50s from L'Aquila.
"Just come and see our houses which are deemed to be in the 'habitable' zone."
The man said he and his family were being forced to live in a house that was in reality uninhabitable, a situation he said was putting them in danger.
Around 11,000 quake survivors still live in tents and about 25,000 more in hotels on the Adriatic coast.
Authorities aim to rehouse around 15,000 in new homes before the end of the year, including 2,500 before the end of September.
The unveiling of the new homes came a day after a fresh earthquake struck Italy.
The moderate tremor measuring 4.2 on the Richter scale shook the central region of Tuscany on Monday, prompting scared residents to rush into the streets, geologists and reports said.
No damage was reported, news agency ANSA said.
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