A strong earthquake was registered this Saturday at noon with its epicenter on the border of Ecuador and Peru. It reached a magnitude 7 and caused the death of at least one person.
According to the Geophysical Institute of the National Polytechnic School, the earthquake occurred at 12:11 local time at a depth of 44 kilometers and 29.12 kilometers from Balao (Guayas), in southwestern Ecuador.
After the first quake, another with a magnitude of 4.8 occurred at a depth of 24 kilometers, according to the Institute.
Due to the movement of the earth, Ecuadorian government sources have indicated that there is some discomfort in the center of the Andean city of Cuenca, where the facade of a house collapsed on a vehicle in which a dead man was found.
The earthquake was also strongly felt in Peru, mainly in the city of Tumbes, where some material damage was reported, such as the fall of a watchtower of an old military barracks, but no personal damage.
There, citizens immediately took to the streets as a security measure, while other people reported on social networks that the earthquake was also felt in the regions of La Libertad and Áncash, more than 500 kilometers south of Tumbes.
Zarumilla provincial mayor Christian Aguayo told radio station RPP that this was “the strongest jolt I have witnessed in my entire life.”
In this regard, the National Emergency Operations Center (COEN) reported that the first responders units together with the local authorities have started the review of the vulnerable areas, without reporting, so far, structural damage or damage to the population.
After the strong movements in northern Peru, the Directorate of Hydrography and Navigation assured on Twitter that a tsunami alert has not been generated on the coasts of the Pacific Ocean.
Even the Civil Protection Institute (Indeci) has not reported preliminary damages, but has detailed a series of safety measures that the population must follow in these emergencies.
He added that through COEN he coordinates with regional and local authorities, monitors the situation and urges local emergency operations centers to be kept active.
Peru and Ecuador are located in the area called the Pacific Ring of Fire, where about 85% of the world’s seismic activity occurs.
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Source: Clarin
Mary Ortiz is a seasoned journalist with a passion for world events. As a writer for News Rebeat, she brings a fresh perspective to the latest global happenings and provides in-depth coverage that offers a deeper understanding of the world around us.