The 1908 Messina earthquake (also known as the 1908 Messina and Reggio earthquake) was on 28 December in Sicily and Calabria in southern Italy. It had a moment magnitude of 7.1 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI ("Extreme"). The epicentre was in the Strait of Messina which is the water between Sicily and Italy. The cities of Messina and Reggio Calabria were almost completely destroyed and between 75,000 and 82,000 people died. It was the most destructive earthquake ever to strike Europe.