Un-reinforced masonry construction is NOT your friend in a quake. Compare the similar magnitude quake in Coalinga, CA in 1983. No one died, even though several dozen brick downtown buildings fell. Newer construction in the town rode out the quake with minor damage. Sorry to hear about this.
Anyone know how buildings in and around the Vatican fared--and to a greater extent, Rome, as a result of this quake?
L’Aquila is a much bigger city than Coalinga. Also, L’Aquila was built on an old lake bed - it may have had worse soil characteristics than Coalinga.
That said, one of the most survivable quake structures is the American wood-frame house. We have plenty of urban areas in quake zones with unreinforced masonry, though, and we’re going to have our own disaster in time.