An earthquake measuring 6,7 on the Richter scale hit the west coast of Colombia early on Monday, Colombian officials said, adding that no deaths have been reported from the quake thus far.
The quake hit at 4.06am local time, according to Julian Villarroel, director of Colombia’s Institute of Geology and Mining, who gave the epicentre as the village of Puerto Pizarro on Colombia’s Pacific coast.
Seismic authorities in the United States and France measured the quake at seven on the Richter scale.
The US Geological Survey said the epicentre was 95km north-west of the coastal city of Buenaventura, at a depth of 10km.
The quake was also reported by the Earth Sciences Observatory in Strasbourg, France.
Villarroel said authorities are evaluating damage along the Pacific coast where the quake was most strongly felt.
The region has been hit by a half dozen quakes of magnitude six or more in the past 15 years; one of them, measuring seven, struck in November 1991. — Sapa-AFP