Ecuador: A 6-magnitude earthquake hit the country’s coast

The epicenter of the tremor, which occurred at 1:28 a.m. on Sunday in Argentina, was located in the Pacific, 12 kilometers from the coastal city of Esmeraldas, northwest and capital of the province of the same name (bordering Colombia), reported the Geophysical Institute (IG) of Quito.The natural phenomenon resulted in several aftershocks with magnitude of up to 5.1, that lasted until the early hours of Sunday, the institute added, according to the AFP news agency.

Earthquake in Ecuador preliminary magnitude 5.9 (EMSC).
•Strong intensities are reported.
•Possible damage in localities near the epicenter.
•No tsunami hazard. pic.twitter.com/Cg41RUacSb — SkyAlert (@SkyAlertMx)
March 27, 2022

The Risk Management portfolio said in a statement that due to the main earthquake that was located in the city of Esmeraldas, a total of 30 houses were damaged, as well as other buildings corresponding to two medical centers and the Integrated Security Service ECU911. The geological phenomenon caused the temporary interruption of the electrical service in Esmeraldas and in the nearby resort of Atacames.The Risk Management agency said that the earthquake was felt in 11 other provinces of the country. In this sense, the president of Ecuador, Guillermo Lasso, reported on the social network Twitter that the governor of Esmeraldas, Tania Obando, activated the provincial Emergency Operations Committee (COE) “to assess damages and future risks.” The Geophysical Institute of Quito indicated that the magnitude 6 earthquake is associated with the contact zone of the Nazca and South American plates, a process that causes the largest tremors in the country.

Original source in Spanish