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Messina, Sicily, 1908

PO Messina 1909

Between 5:20 and 5:21 a.m. of Monday, December 28, 1908, almost half of the residents of Messina, Sicily, died in an earthquake, most buried in their beds as the city’s buildings collapsed on top of them. Two thousand more, fleeing the collapsing buildings and gathering at the waterfront, died 10 minutes later when a succession of three tsunami waves crashed over the shore. In the days that followed, the post office set up this temporary station for survivors.