Tsunami Triggered By Chile Earthquake

Tsunami Triggered By Chile Earthquake

A tsunami was generated by the 8.2-magnitude Chile earthquake, which also set of small landslides and caused power outages. Interior Minister Rodrigo Penailillo said five people died while around 300 prisoners escaped in the aftermath.

The epicenter of the earthquake was around 60 miles northwest of the city of Iquique. Residents along the coast were asked to evacuate by the National Emergency Office of Chile.

President Michelle Bachelet said the damage will become clearer soon and the government will inspect the areas affected when daylight comes. The president added that the country has suitably dealt with the initial emergency hours after the disaster.

Emergency communications manager of World Vision in Chile, Fabrizio Guzman, said people evacuated to higher ground after they experienced an earthquake in 2010. Guzman added that a number of aftershocks were noted and communications were down in the areas affected by the Chile earthquake.

A number of tsunami warnings were issued by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, but were later cancelled. These tsunami warnings were issued for Peru, Chile, and the Pacific coast of Mexico.

Victor Sardino of the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said six-foot tsunami waves were generated along coast of Pisagua due to the earthquake while Iquique was hit by seven-foot-high waves.

Initial reports have indicated that Chile may have avoided a huge disaster even as an earthquake of this magnitude can wreak havoc especially when it hits at night. Some regions saw roads damaged by landslides while phone and power outages were seen in other regions.

Chile is located on the “Ring of Fire” where volcanic eruptions and earthquakes frequently happen. The latest Chile earthquake follows a 6.7-magnitude earthquake that struck the country on March 16. Another 6.1-magnitude earthquake also hit the area one week after.

Pacific Tsunami Warning Center geophysicist Gerard Fryer revealed that the Chile earthquake will not result to any danger to the North American coastline.

Posted by James Fried on Thursday April 03 2014, 2:52 AM EST. Ref: CNN. Link. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, World. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0