A magnitude 6.2 earthquake has struck Central Italy, leaving at least 38 people dead and 150 missing, as rescuers search for survivors.

Many of the dead were in the village of Pescara del Tronto which was levelled to the ground and there were fears the number of casualties could rise.

Much of the town of Amatrice was reduced to rubble and a family of four were feared dead nearby in Accumoli.

Although the earthquake struck at a shallow depth of 10km, its intensity was compared to the Aquila earthquake in April 2009 in which 309 people died.

The epicentre was around Accumoli where several people died.

Some buildings in the capital shook for 20 seconds as the quake struck the regional border area of Umbria, Lazio and Le Marche.

Some 80 aftershocks have been reported since.

Local authorities were unsure of the full extent of casualties, but 11 people were reported dead including children in the neighbouring villages of Pescara del Tronto and Arquata del Tronto. An elderly couple and a boy were among the victims.

Two boys aged four and seven, who took shelter under a bed, were pulled alive from the rubble of the house they had been staying in with their grandmother.

Rescuers were still trying to reach the remote village of Peracchia di Acqua Santa Terme a few kilometres to the east.