Pope Francis made an unannounced visit on Tuesday to the quake-stricken town of Amatrice, telling its residents: "I am close to you, I pray for you."
Francis arrived in Amatrice with Bishop of Rieti, Domenico Pompili aboard a dark blue Volkswagen Golf with tinted windows and an Italian number-plate at around 9.30 am.
His first visit was to the newly built ‘Capranica’ school, where he met elementary and middle-school aged children, who gave him several of their handmade drawings.
Pope Francis hugged the children one-by-one and listened to their stories of the deadly earthquake in Amatrice where 231 of the total 297 people died.
A large crowd gathered as Francis arrived in Amatrice's ruined historic centre, where he met the town's mayor Sergio Pirozzi, police and firemen as well as members of the public before spending a few minutes in private prayer.
Francis told Amatrice's residents he had not visited immediately after the devastating 24 August earthquake although they were always in his thoughts and prayers.
"I let a little time pass, so that some things could be resolved," he said, quoted by Vatican Radio.
"But from the first moment, I felt that I needed to come to you! Simply to express my closeness to you, nothing more. And I pray, pray for you!"
"Solidarity and prayer: this is my offering to you. May the Lord bless you all; may Our Lady watch over you in this moment of sadness, pain, and trial.”
“Let’s move forward; there is always a future," he said.
Francis later visited the quake-hit towns of Arquata del Tronto, where 49 people were killed when it was reduced to rubble and Accuomoli, where a building collapsed following the quake and 11 people died.
On his way to Accuomoli and Arquata del Tronto, the pontiff stopped to have lunch with around 60 elderly people at an assisted living facility in Rieti.
Francis on Sunday confirmed his intention to visit Amatrice , but did not not say when.
Nearly 400 people were injured and 4,000 left homeless by the powerful temblor which flattened the picturesque medieval hillside towns in the border area between Lazio, Umbria, Marche and Abruzzo.
Scores of aftershocks have continued to traumatise residents in the quake zone and many have accepted accommodation in hotels along Italy's coast.
Italiani premier Matteo Renzi vowed last month that the quake-hit area would be "restored to its former glory" at an estimated cost of at least four billion euros.
