At least one person died after a magnitude 6.5 earthquake in Ecuador

At least one person died in Ecuador after a magnitude earthquake 6.5 open degree according to Richter, which was recorded this Saturday in the province of Guayas, and was also felt in northern Peru, which caused more material damage.

According to him Geophysical Institute of the National Polytechnic Schoolthe earthquake occurred at 12:11 local time (17:12 GMT) at 2.78 degrees south latitude and 79.93 degrees west longitude.

The earthquake occurred at a depth of 44 kilometers and 29.12 kilometers from Balao (Guayas)in southwestern Ecuador.

After the first earthquake, another magnitude 4.8 occurred at a depth of 24 kilometers, according to the Institute.

The Secretariat for Risk Management He emphasized that the damage was recorded in the cantonal center of the Andean city of Cuenca, where the facade of a house collapsed on a vehicle, killing one person.

The earthquake was strongly felt, even in the capital of Ecuador, Quito, in the Andean region of the country.

The Geophysical Institute received reports from the population that felt the earthquake in the province of El Oro, on the border with Peru, and also in Loja, as well as on the coast of Manabí and in Zamora Chinchipe in Amazonia.

He Oceanographic Institute of the Navy (Inocar) noted that an earthquake does not meet the conditions to cause a tsunami.

EFE confirmed that in the center of the coastal city of Guayaquil, some debris fell from old houses.

Shortly after the earthquake occurred, the state-owned oil company Petroecuador indicated that it had no information about developments at its facilities. “The protocol for these cases has been followed and the operation is continuing as normal,” he said.

The Risk Secretariat noted that there was no news at the airports.

BELT OF FIRE

Ecuador is in Pacific Belt or Ring of Firewhere some of the most important subduction zones (collapse of tectonic plates) in the world are concentrated and is the scene of strong seismic activity.

In addition to Ecuador, the Belt, which has the shape of a horseshoe, also includes other countries such as Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico, United States and Canada.

Following April 16Ecuador will remember the seventh anniversary of one of the most destructive earthquakes in its recent history, a magnitude of 7.8.

This natural phenomenon, which occurred on April 16, 2016, left more than 670 dead, thousands affected, as well as millions of material losses.

This earthquake hit the provinces of Esmeraldas (on the border with Colombia) and its neighbor Manabí, both located on the coast of the Andean country, but it also affected other areas and was strongly felt, even in the capital of Ecuador, Quito, located in the province of Pichincha, in the Andean zone of the country.