A powerful 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck off the southern coast of Chile and Argentina on Friday, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said.
The US National Weather Service issued a tsunami warning and Chilean authorities ordered the evacuation of coastal areas in the remote Magallanes region.
Later, the director of the state disaster agency Magallanes lifted the evacuation order and said “everyone can return and resume their activities.”
Chile’s SENAPRED disaster agency said shortly after the quake that it expected tsunami waves of between one and three meters to hit the coastline, with Chile’s Hydrographic and Oceanographic Service (SHOA) estimating that they would arrive within a couple of hours.
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There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage due to the earthquake.
What do we know about the earthquake?
The USGS reported that the epicenter lay some 219 kilometers (around 136 miles) off the coast in the Drake Passage, a maritime route between the southernmost tip of South America and Antarctica.
It struck at 9:58 a.m. local time (1258 GMT) with several aftershocks reported afterward.
The depth of the quake was reported to be around 10 kilometers.
Chile is one of the countries most affected by earthquakes, lying on the convergence of three tectonic plates: the Nazca, the South American, and the Antarctic plates.
Chile orders evacuation of southern coastal region
Chile’s National Service for Disaster Prevention and Response issued a “tsunami alert” after the reports of the earthquake, adding that “evacuation to a safe zone is being ordered for the coastal sectors of the Magallanes region.”
“We are calling for the evacuation of the coastline throughout the Magallanes region,” President Gabriel Boric wrote on social media.
“Right now, our duty is to be prepared and heed the authorities.”
Video footage showed people calmly left the areas under alert as sirens blared in the background before the evacuation order was rescinded.
Argentina’s southernmost city Ushuaia, also considered the world’s southernmost city, reported no material damage and no evacuation order was issued.
However, Argentinian authorities issued an evacuation order for the village of Puerto Almanza, just down the coast from Ushuaia.
