A strong earthquake struck both Northern Peru and southern Ecuador on Saturday, leaving at least 15 people dead.
According to the reports, the violent and abrupt earthquake killed at least 15 residents and trapped others under the rubber as the streets were littered with debris and fallen power lines.
In a report published by the US Geological Survey, it was revealed that the earthquake struck the grounds with a magnitude of about 6.8 in the country’s coastal Guayas region.
Following the massive earthquake, Ecuadorian president, Guillermo Lasso released a statement, claiming that the earthquake had “without a doubt … generated alarm in the population.”
Lasso also asked in a tweet for people to remain calm.
According to The Guardian, “twelve of the victims died in the coastal state of El Oro and two in the highlands state of Azuay, the president’s office said in a statement.” Meanwhile, authorities reported that at least 126 people were injured.
According to Peruvian prime minister Alberto Otárola a four-year-old girl was among the victims and that she had died from head trauma after her home in the Tumbes region suddenly collapsed.
“One of the Azuay victims, in the Andean community of Cuenca, was a passenger in a vehicle crushed by rubble from a house, Ecuador’s emergency response agency said. In the coastal province of El Oro, people were trapped under rubble, the agency reported. In the community of Machala, a two-storey home collapsed before people could be evacuated, a pier gave way and a building’s walls cracked, trapping an unknown number of people,” The Guardian added in its exclusive report.
During an interview with Machala resident Fabricio Cruz, he revealed that he was in his third-floor apartment when he felt the strong earthquake and saw his television hit the ground.
“I heard how my neighbors were shouting and there was a lot of noise,” said Cruz, a 34-year-old photographer.
Meanwhile, authorities in Guayaquil reported multiple cracks on several homes and buildings. Three vehicle tunnels were also shut down for a moment.
The Guardian revealed that the “Ecuador’s adverse events monitoring directorate has ruled out a tsunami threat. The earthquake was also felt in Peru, from its northern border with Ecuador to the central Pacific coast. No deaths or injuries were immediately reported. In the northern region of Tumbes, the old walls of an army barracks collapsed, authorities said.”
