A strong earthquake struck the Naples area on the evening of 31 July, knocking out electricity in several neighborhoods and causing damage in the nearby town of Pozzuoli. The tremor was widely felt across the Campanian capital, with initial estimates from Italy's National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) putting the magnitude at 4.7.
The INGV said the earthquake occurred at 19:46 local time. Its epicenter was located at the Solfatara, a volcanic crater area close to Pozzuoli, at a depth of only 3 kilometers. A shock at such shallow depth is generally felt much more intensely than a deeper earthquake of the same magnitude.
The quake caused power cuts in several districts of Naples. In Pozzuoli, the town closest to the epicenter, local reports described damage in different parts of the town. The events immediately prompted concern among residents, who described the shaking as sudden and violent.
Within minutes, social media was flooded with messages from people who said they had never experienced anything like it. «Never felt it so strong», some users wrote, as residents across the city and its surroundings shared their impressions. Fear spread quickly, and many posts focused on the power cuts and on the damage reported in Pozzuoli.
The Solfatara is part of the Campi Flegrei volcanic area, a densely populated coastal region west of Naples that has long been known for its seismic activity. The volcanic system beneath the area is closely monitored by scientists, and the earthquakes recorded there are typically shallow. That combination of shallow depth and a large population above the epicenter helps explain why the shock was felt so strongly by so many people.
According to the INGV, the magnitude measurement was a first estimate. A magnitude 4.7 earthquake is considered moderate in technical terms, but its shallow origin and its location below a densely built urban area amplified its effects on the ground. The event once again focused attention on the seismic vulnerability of the Naples region, which has a long history of tremors linked to the volcanic systems around the Gulf of Naples.
The strong jolt occurred in the early evening and immediately became one of the most discussed events in the affected communities. While initial emergency reports were still arriving, the episode illustrated how deeply seismic activity is felt in this part of Italy.