(MENAFN) A powerful earthquake struck southern Ecuador and northern Peru on Saturday, leaving at least 14 people dead, several trapped under rubble, and over a hundred injured. The earthquake, with a magnitude of about 6.8, was centered just off the Pacific Coast, about 50 miles south of Guayaquil, Ecuador's second-largest city. The U.S. Geological Survey reported the quake's epicenter was in the ocean, and it was felt in both countries.
In Ecuador, 13 people died, and at least 126 were injured. Most of the victims were in the coastal state of El Oro, where several people were trapped under rubble. In the highlands state of Azuay, a passenger in a vehicle was crushed by rubble from a house in the Andean community of Cuenca. The quake also caused damages to health care centers and schools in the affected areas.
Peruvian Prime Minister Alberto Otárola reported that a 4-year-old girl died from head trauma she suffered in the collapse of her home in the Tumbes region, on the border with Ecuador. The earthquake was felt from Peru's northern border with Ecuador to the central Pacific coast.
Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso said the earthquake had "without a doubt ... generated alarm in the population." Lasso's office reported that 11 of the victims died in El Oro, and two in Azuay. Lasso also announced that he would travel to El Oro to assess the situation.
Rescue teams were out on the streets, littered with debris and fallen power lines, to search for survivors. The Risk Management Secretariat, Ecuador's emergency response agency, reported that in the community of Machala, a two-story home collapsed before people could evacuate, a pier gave way, and a building's walls cracked, trapping an unknown number of people. The agency said firefighters worked to rescue people while the National Police assessed damage, their work made more difficult by downed lines that interrupted telephone and electricity service.
Fabricio Cruz, a Machala resident, said he was in his third-floor apartment when he felt a strong tremor and saw his television hit the ground. He immediately headed out and heard his neighbors shouting amidst the noise. Cruz noticed the collapsed roofs of nearby houses when he looked around.
The earthquake highlights the vulnerability of the region to natural disasters, and the importance of being prepared to respond to them. The affected countries will need to work together to provide aid and support to those affected by the earthquake, particularly in the areas of health care, shelter, and food.
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