Chile shook by a powerful earthquake

A seismic intensity of 7.1 on the Richter scale occurred in central Chile yesterday, causing many buildings to shake.

>>> Earthquake 6.2 Richter in Chile

The American Geological Agency announced the earthquake in Chile's Maule region on 18h37 on March 25 at local time (5:37 am Vietnamese time). The epicenter of the earthquake lies at a depth of 34.8km and is about 215km south of Santiago. Many buildings in the capital Santiago shook, The Huffington Post reported.

The epicenter of the earthquake is located in the province of Talca in the Maule region.
Chile is about 27km northwest. (Graphics: aljazeera.com)

Earthquakes with a magnitude of 7 or more can cause tsunamis. So the Chilean authorities asked people in some coastal areas to evacuate due to tsunami fears, but they canceled the order after the Chilean navy confirmed that it was not an earthquake that caused a tsunami.

An 8.8-magnitude seismic appeared in central Chile in 2010 and caused tsunamis that killed about 500 people.

Currently the Chilean government has not announced damage to people and property caused by seismic yesterday. Earlier a 5.1-magnitude earthquake occurred in Santiago on March 24, but did not cause major casualties and damage.