DM Monitoring
QUITO: A strong earthquake jolted southern Ecuador and northern Peru, killing at least 15 people— 14 in coastal region of Ecuador, one in northern Peru— and trapping others under rubble.
The earthquake, reportedly, caused structural damage to multiple homes, schools and medical centers.
The quake, which the United States Geological Survey (USGS) estimated at magnitude 6.8, struck at a depth of 66.4 km about 10 km from the city of Balao.
The tremor was centred about 80km south of Guayaquil, country’s second-biggest city.
The earthquake did not appear likely to generate a tsunami, said officials.
Ecuadorian authorities also reported that at least 126 people sustained injuries.
Ecuador’s President Guillermo Lasso urged citizens to remain “calm and to be informed through official channels” about damage to buildings in a video posted on twitter.
A four-year-old girl died from head trauma she suffered in the collapse of her home in Peru, said Peruvian Prime Minister Alberto Otárola.
