Cavers pull off 'delicate' rescue

Applause broke out when Marta Valente was freed

A 24-year-old student has been pulled from the rubble in L'Aquila nearly 23 hours after a major earthquake hit the central Italian city.

Mountain cavers worked for five hours to free Marta Valente from the four-storey building where she was trapped, Italian media reported.

She was in bed when the deadly earthquake struck early on Monday.

A concrete pillar that broke off the ceiling had prevented other parts of the building falling on her.

Applause broke out when she was finally freed at about 0200 (2400 GMT). She was said to be unhurt.

"It was a very, very delicate rescue," said one caver involved in the rescue.

"There were beams that were a danger very close, and we had to take care not to trigger a collapse as we tried to free her legs."

The rescuers said they had to dismantle part of the student's bed before freeing her legs and easing her from the rubble.

A 22-year-old man freed from the rubble of the same building a few hours before had alerted rescuers that Ms Valente was calling for help, still trapped inside.

Italian rescuers have been racing against time to save people trapped after the 6.3-magnitude earthquake.