6.5 Magnitude Earthquake Rocks Central Chile

A strong earthquake of 6.5 magnitude has rocked the central chile at midnight yesterday. The authorities have ordered a precautionary evacuation in the area. The U.S. Geological Survey says the quake's epicentre was 50 km northeast of Valparaiso, Chile, and it had a depth of 25 km. It struck at just before midnight local time (9.20 a.m. Tuesday IST).

Locals say the quake was felt for almost a minute. Authorities say the evacuation was ordered from the city of Constitucion to Tongoy. However, Chile's oceanography service ruled out the possibility of a tsunami.