LIMA (AFP) โ A major 6.9-magnitude earthquake rocked southern Peru Sunday, U.S. experts said, but there were no immediate reports of casualties or considerable damage.
The quake hit at 11:21 p.m. GMT, 42 kilometers east-northeast of the town of Tambo at a depth of 101 kilometers, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Centered 467 kilometers southeast of the capital Lima, the quake sent panicked people into the streets of the city of Ayacucho โ home to about 150,000. It was first reported by the USGS as a 7.0-magnitude event.
In the capital, however, the quake was felt as a 4.4-magnitude occurrence โ noticed by residents of high-rises but not those out and about in the sprawling city of eight million.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center cautioned that quakes of this size โsometimes generate local tsunamis that can be destructive along coasts located within 100 kilometers of the earthquake epicenter.โ
โAuthorities in the region of the epicenter should be aware of this possibility and take appropriate action,โ it added.
