Seismologists on Sunday warned of devastating aftershocks in the wake of a powerful 6.6 magnitude earthquake that left at least 25,000 people homeless.

Margarita Segou, a seismologist at the British Geological Survey, said that while there will likely be a decrease in earthquakes in the region, there is a likelihood of stronger aftershocks in the aftermath of Sunday's destructive earthquake.

"We cannot exclude the possibility of larger magnitude aftershocks," she told AP news agency.

Carlo Doglioni, president of Italy's National Institute for Geophysics and Volcanology, said that the intense activity surrounding a series of faults in central Italy is not abnormal.

A similar series of three seismic events occurred within months of each other in 1703, which is "normal for the Apennines," Doglioni said.

It "means we can expect some 5 magnitude quakes and many of magnitude 4" in the wake of Sunday's earthquake near the historic city of Norcia, he added.

(DW)