Italian quake causes supercar shutdown

EARTHQUAKES in Northern Italy have rocked the country’s big three exotic car-makers – Ferrari, Lamborghini and Maserati – plus motorcycle brand Ducati, all of which suspended production as a result.

The 5.8-magnitude quake’s epicentre was at Mirandola, less than 50km from the factories of the iconic Italian brands, and tremors were reportedly felt as far away as Austria.

Claiming at least 16 lives and injuring 350 people, it was the second major quake in the area in less than two weeks.

Two aftershocks registering at least magnitude five have also been reported.

Ferrari and Ducati both announced factory closures using their Twitter accounts following the most recent quake and posted messages of sympathy to those affected.

Lamborghini posted several updates, most recently saying “everything seems to be fine”, and that it will “re-start production as soon as possible”.

Public relations manager for Australian Ferrari and Maserati distributor European Automotive Imports, Edward Rowe, confirmed both companies paused production for 24 hours, but that delays to deliveries were not expected.

He said workers were sent home so any damage to the facilities could be assessed and to give employees a chance to address the quake’s impact on their lives.

A magnitude-six quake on May 20 had an epicentre even closer to the factories in Emilia Romagna and killed seven people, rendering more than 5000 homeless and damaged many historic buildings.

The earlier quake reportedly did not affect operations at any vehicle-making facilities.

Following the second quake, more than 8000 people are now reportedly homeless in the densely populated region.

There are no reports of injuries to employees of any affected vehicle brands and all were expected to return to work today.

Ironically, Lamborghini’s promotional video for the Aventador had an earthquake theme, showing the supercar dodging cracks in the earth and newly formed geological features.