At Least a Dozen Dead After 6.8-Magnitude Earthquake Hits Ecuador

At least 12 people were killed after a powerful earthquake struck southern Ecuador.

According to United States Geological Survey, the 6.8-magnitude quake occurred Saturday afternoon in the country’s coastal Guayas region. It was centered about 50 miles south of Guayaquil, Ecuador’s second-largest city that has a reported population of three million. 

Cristian Torres, head of Ecuador’s emergency response agency, said 11 of the victims died in the province of El Oro, while a 12th person died in the nearby province of Azuay. Officials told the Associated Press the quake caused several structural damage in the area, leaving some residences to completely collapse. Emergency personnel are now working to rescue people from the wreckage; however, their efforts have been hindered by electricity outages.

Authorities said the victim in Azuay was riding in a vehicle that was crushed by the debris of a damaged home. Three others were fatally crushed by a security camera tower that collapsed on Jambelí Island.

“I went out into the street because I saw people starting to run in panic, getting out of their cars,” Magaly Escandon, a businessowner in Cuenca, told the AFP.

Footage of the earthquake has continued to flood social media. One of the videos shows news presenters fleeing the set as the ground begins to shake.

The BBC reports Saturday’s quake is the strongest to hit Ecuador in nearly seven years.