6.9 magnitude earthquake recorded in northern Chile, no injuries or tsunami risk

Santiago de Chile. A magnitude 6.9 earthquake was recorded on the afternoon of this Monday in northern Chile, reported the National Seismological Center of the University of Chile. The earthquake occurred at 17:52 local time (20:52 GMT) and had its epicenter twenty kilometers northeast of the town of Calama, in the Antofagasta region, with a depth of 114 kilometers, according to the organization’s statement. The tremor could be felt in three other regions of the South American country’s north: Arica, Tarapacá and Atacama. The National Disaster Prevention and Response Service (Senapred) indicated that it is a medium-magnitude earthquake and that, preliminarily, no damage to people or critical infrastructure has been reported. According to local press, power supply interruptions were reported. In addition, at least five aftershocks (of magnitudes 4.3; 4.2; 3.9; 3.4 and 3.4) were felt in the same area where the first tremor was recorded.

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“The Hydrographic and Oceanographic Service of the Chilean Navy (SHOA) ruled out the tsunami threat for the coasts of Chile,” they pointed out. They did so in the entity’s report. Chile is located in the southeastern zone of the Pacific Ring of Fire, the most seismic zone in the world. The country suffers hundreds of small telluric movements due to the subduction of the Nazca plate under the South American plate. In 1960, the southern Chilean region of Valdivia suffered the most powerful earthquake recorded in modern times. In this regard, the earthquake reached a magnitude of 9.6 on the open Richter scale.