The news of the Italian armistice with the Allies reached Frascati at 19:45 on 8 September 1943. The townspeople who, less than 24 hours beforehand had been hiding in bomb shelters, were now fleeing south to escape the occupation of the German Army. The townspeople had no time to clean up debris and bury their dead. As a result, the German armed forces ("Wehrmacht") declared the area as an "infected area" and had plans to eliminate the city using flamethrowers. The remaining citizens, however, had found out about the German plan to raze the city, and worked to bury their dead. In total, 485 civilians were victims of the allied raid.