A new earthquake has struck the Emilia region in northern Italy, killing at least 15 people and leaving several others trapped under rubble, BBC News reported.

Tuesday May 29 tremor, estimated at magnitude 5.8, hit the same region where a quake 10 days ago killed seven people and destroyed many buildings.

The Italian government says the number of people made homeless has gone up from 6,000 to 14,000.

The towns of Mirandola, Medolla and Cavezzo were closest to the epicentre but the northern cities of Milan and Bologna were shaken too.

The quake struck 40km (25mi) north of Bologna and 60km east of Parma, at a depth of 9.6km (six miles), Reuters reports. It was felt as far away as Venice and the Austrian border.

Many people ran out of buildings when they felt the tremor, which hit at 09:03 local time (07:03 GMT).

There have been several aftershocks since, including a large one at about midday which sent people out into the streets in cities up to 100km away.