Peru Earthquake death toll rises to 125 as aftershocks continue.....
Pastor Dale Morgan
Peru Earthquake death toll rises to 125 as aftershocks continue.....*
LIMA (AFP) - - A powerful 7.9-magnitude earthquake, the strongest to
rock Peru in decades, killed at least 125 people and injured more than
1,000 others, Health Minister Carlos Vallejos said Thursday.
The quake, which lasted for almost two minutes, sent people fleeing into
the streets and prompted evacuations cities along South America's
Pacific coast, after tsunami warnings were issued.
Those alerts by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, were later canceled.
The earthquake, which struck just offshore Peru at 6:41 pm (2341 GMT)
Wednesday, was felt across the country and to the far north in Ecuador.
The casualty toll was expected to rise throughout the night, and
hospitals and health centers around the country were put on high alert.
A strike launched Wednesday by some health workers was called off so
that all medical personnel could be available to help with the emergency.
In 1970, a quake of similar size in Peru killed some 70,000 people.
Wednesday's quake toppled trees, fractured windows and left visible
damage in homes and buildings. Telecommunications in Lima were also cut
but were being slowly reestablished, while power and water services
appeared to continue without interruption.
The quake and aftershocks sparked panic in the capital, where people
remained in the streets hours after the first big tremor, and buildings
were evacuated for safety.
Peruvian President Alan Garcia, without citing any numbers, said that
"fortunately there was not a high number of deaths for an event of this
size."
But "there are areas seriously damaged," he added, declaring schools
across the country closed Thursday to inspect classrooms for damage.
In the coastal city of Ica, 300 kilometers (190 miles) south of Lima, at
least four were reported dead and dozens injured when the quake crumpled
the Senor de Luren church during a worship service.
The nearby city of Pisco was also hit hard as people reportedly died
after homes collapsed from the tremor.
The quake, which measured 7.9 on the moment magnitude scale, struck
offshore 148 kilometers (92 miles) south-southeast of Lima at a depth of
40 kilometers (25 miles), according to the US Geological Survey.
Peruvian authorities measured it at 7.7 on the Richter scale.
A second 5.9 magnitude earthquake struck about an hour and 20 minutes
later near the same location and at a depth of 10 kilometers (0.6 miles).
Late Wednesday, the country was rattled by a 5.6 magnitude aftershock
near the coast of central Peru.
Nearly 40 minutes after the quake first struck, at 0019 GMT, the Pacific
Tsunami Warning Center issued warnings and watches for the eleven
countries along the Pacific south of the United States, especially
Chile, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia.
In reaction, the Colombian government ordered evacuations in the port
cities of Tumaco and Buenaventura and the coastal town of Bahia Solano,
while Peruvian authorities told residents of La Punta district, in the
port of Callao which serves Lima, to leave their homes.
Although a subsequent advisory from the center stated that sea level and
subsurface instruments indicated a tsunami had been generated by the
quake, the warning was cancelled at 0209 GMT.