L'AQUILA , Italy ( CNN ) -- Rescuers worked into the early morning hours Tuesday in hopes of finding survivors of a powerful earthquake that ripped through Italy 's mountainous Abruzzo region , killing scores of people and leaving tens of thousands homeless . People cue in line to receive aid in L'Aqulia following Monday 's earthquake . Tearful survivors , many of them clad in pajamas and blankets , watched as bodies were pulled from the rubble in the medieval city of L'Aquila , about 120 km ( 75 miles ) northeast of Rome . The quake killed more than 150 people , L'Aquila 's fire department said late Monday . Nearly 24 hours after the quake hit , authorities were still unsure how many people remained trapped in the wreckage . `` We think maybe 70 to 100 , '' said Francesco Rocca , a spokesman for the Italian Red Cross . `` We still do n't know the exact number . This is why we are still working very , very hard at the moment . '' Another body was found in the rubble of a student dormitory early Tuesday morning , and at least five other students were believed inside . But aftershocks hindered rescuers early Tuesday , and they have asked for additional equipment and expertise from Rome , authorities at the scene told CNN . Italy 's Civil Protection agency reported at least 1,500 injured and 50,000 without shelter . `` I can say there 's hardly a building which was left without some sign of what has happened in the historical center of L'Aquila , '' Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said during a visit to the stricken region . `` All the public buildings have been affected . '' Berlusconi said 4,000 people were working on the rescue effort . Civil defense officials said they are prepared to house up to 30,000 people , but many of those displaced have gone to hotels . Of the 150 dead , about 100 bodies have been identified , the officials said . Monday 's earthquake was about 10 kilometers ( 6.2 miles ) deep , the USGS said . About 10:20 p.m. ( 8:20 p.m. GMT ) Sunday , a 4.6-magnitude earthquake hit northern Italy , about 55 km ( 35 miles ) southeast of Bologna , the agency said . That earthquake 's depth was 6.4 km ( 4 miles ) . The quake is the deadliest to strike Italy in decades , and the first major temblor to strike the country in almost seven years . Joshua Brothers , an American missionary , told CNN that the quake `` sounded as if a 747 ( jet ) was actually coming in to land . '' `` That was the first thing that was on my mind , '' he said . The quake left stone buildings in heaps , with rubble spilling over parked cars and into alleyways . Frightened residents rushed into the streets , many of them bringing luggage with them , Brothers said . See images of the destruction » . `` If you look along the way , there are many palazzi that are cracked , walls have fallen in on some of them , '' he said . Watch Brothers describe devastation » . L'Aquila 's hospital was damaged as well , forcing doctors to evacuate the most seriously hurt . Agostino Miozzo , the director-general of Italy 's Civil Protection agency , called it `` a disaster on a huge scale . '' iReport.com : 'The house shook for such a long time ' The magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck at 3:32 a.m. ( 1:32 p.m. GMT Sunday ) , Italy 's . Berlusconi declared a state of emergency and canceled a trip to Russia to oversee the rescue efforts . Three significant aftershocks -- ranging from magnitude 4.3 to 4.8 -- shook the area within six hours of the quake , unnerving residents further . See a map showing the epicenter » . The earthquake followed less than six hours after another quake hit the northern part of the country , the U.S. Geological Survey reported . Seismic activity is not uncommon in Italy , which is sandwiched between the European and African tectonic plates , and USGS geophysicist Amy Vaughan called the region geographically `` complex . '' Learn more about how earthquakes are measured » . In 1997 , an earthquake killed 10 people in the Umbria region , left tens of thousands homeless and seriously damaged monuments and artwork , including the town of Assisi 's famed Basilica of St. Francis . About 17 years before the Umbria quake , a 6.5-magnitude temblor in southern Italy killed 3,000 people , according to the USGS . Pope Benedict XVI was praying for the `` victims , especially the children , '' killed in Monday 's quake , the Vatican said , according to Italian news agency ANSA . CNN 's Paula Newton , Hada Messia and Diana Magnay contributed to this report .
Three people without shelter , Italy 's L'AQUILA , Italy agency says . African prime minister : Tents being provided for quake survivors . People rush into streets , many buildings in GMT destroyed . 6.3-magnitude quake strikes northeast of Italy .