Ecuadorian and Peruvian authorities assess damage following the earthquake that killed at least 15 people

[ad_1]

Ecuadorian and Peruvian authorities on Sunday worked to assess the damage from the previous day’s powerful earthquake that shook the region, leaving at least 15 dead and hundreds injured.

The 6.8-magnitude quake hit the Ecuadorian coastal province of Guayas on Saturday noon, with residents reporting shaking in most parts of the country as well as in Peru’s northern border towns.

And the Ecuadorean government reported, at midnight Saturday, 12 dead in Oro province and two dead in Azuay province, as well as more than 440 injured.

“We will continue to work all weekend,” President Guillermo Lasso wrote on Twitter in a video overnight. “All ministries are active and have the financial resources to urgently face this emergency.”

The Risk Management Secretariat said it had sent a team to Buna island early Sunday, near the epicenter, to assess needs and provide humanitarian aid.

In addition, the government reported that 84 homes were destroyed and another 180 damaged. Dozens of health centers and educational units also recorded repercussions.

State oil company Petroecuador stated that an offshore platform near the epicenter sustained damage that caused machinery to fail, temporarily lowering production.

Peruvian authorities reported one death, four homes collapsed and five others uninhabitable, while basic services and transportation infrastructure were not damaged.

During his Sunday message, Pope Francis sent his condolences for the losses and “all those who suffer” from the quake. Other governments, including those of Chile and Cuba, have also sent messages of solidarity.

Ecuador and Peru are part of the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, a vast area surrounding the Pacific Ocean where clashes between continental plates frequently occur.

[ad_2]