An earthquake of magnitude 6.4 has hit Argentina’s San Juan Province in west-central on Monday night. Following this, a series of aftershocks were recorded around the country, a preliminary report from the United States Geological Survey highlights.
An aftershock with magnitude 5.0 struck around 1000 km east of the first location of the quake after a time gap of 20 minutes. Two more aftershocks with magnitudes 4.9 and 5.3 were noticed in Argentina. The later three quakes were less in magnitude so they were considered as aftershocks.
San Juan Governor Sergio Uñac has confirmed that no injuries have been acknowledged so far and the search for any damage is going on continuously. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) has expressed that there is no chance of a tsunami at present as the situation is under control.
Sergio Uñac has said that local authorities are working continuously to analyze the damage caused by the earthquake in streets and highways in the province. Addressing reporters in a press conference, he said that power cuts have been noticed at some locations and some homes have experienced damage in the Caucete town.
The governor said that security forces evacuated a few people from their homes in Zonda, San Juan. The work of restoring the electricity supply is currently going on with full efforts. He added that no severe structural damage was noticed but some hospitals saw the breaking of glass.
Sergio Uñac has requested people in quake-hit areas to maintain calmness. He gave assurance to bring back the lives to their normal routines by taking adequate measures to repair the damage caused by the unexpected hit of the quake.