Ecuador earthquake kills at least 12, causes wide damage (UPDATE)

Source: AP

By GONZALO SOLANO 26 minutes ago

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — A strong earthquake shook southern Ecuador and northern Peru on Saturday, killing at least a dozen people, trapping others under rubble, and sending rescue teams out into streets littered with debris and fallen power lines.

The U.S. Geological Survey reported an earthquake with a magnitude of about 6.8 that was centered just off the Pacific Coast, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Guayaquil, Ecuador’s second-largest city.

Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso told reporters the earthquake that killed 12 people had “without a doubt ... generated alarm in the population.” In a tweet, he also asked people to remain calm.

Risk Management Secretary Cristian Torres in a radio interview said 11 of the victims died in the coastal state of El Oro and one in the highlands state of Azuay.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/ecuador-earthquake-7517383684eb54226b6db5a3b81f01ea

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Associated Press writers Regina Garcia Cano in Caracas, Venezuela, and Franklin Briceño in Lima, Peru, contributed to this report.