Amatrice's slow reconstruction laid bare a decade on

As residents of Amatrice gathered on Monday for a mass marking the tenth anniversary of the earthquake that devastated the town, international reporting has laid bare the slow pace of its reconstruction. According to The Guardian, as of April, two-thirds of planned public projects in the town had yet to begin, rising to seven in ten in the hardest-hit areas.

The anniversary comes a decade after the 24 August 2016 quake that killed hundreds across central Italy and reduced Amatrice to rubble. The town became a symbol of the disaster, its name attached to the pasta dish it originated, and its fate since has been closely watched as a test of Italy's ability to rebuild after natural catastrophe.

The Guardian's reporting, published on the eve of the anniversary, points to a reconstruction effort that has struggled to translate political promises into completed works. The figures suggest that, even a decade on, much of the physical and civic fabric of the affected communities remains in a state of suspension.