Two Earthquakes Hit Southern Peru

by Yuliya Talmazan | May 18, 2009 at 03:38 pm

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Two earthquakes were felt in southern Peru today: the first earthquake measured 5.4 on Richter scale, the second one of magnitude 4.9 followed in 12 minutes. No casualties or injuries have been reported yet. The earthquakes were felt as far away as Peru's capital Lima.

Two moderate earthquakes shook on Monday the southern parts of Peru, but caused no damage or casualties.

    According to the Geophysics Institute of Peru (IGP), the first earthquake measured 5.4 on the Richter scale, and occurred at 9:01a.m. local time (1401 GMT).

    The second earthquake occurred 12 minutes after the first one, with a magnitude of 4.9.

    The epicenter of the tremors was some 41 km southeast of San Juan de Marcona in Nasca province.

    Both quakes were felt in the national capital Lima and nearby regions.

    An August 2007 earthquake in southern Peru killed 596 people.

The 5.7 magnitude quake has been described as strong and shallow on the coast. The last time Peru was hit with a serious earthquake was in August 2007, when there were 519 confirmed dead with over 1,366 injured.

It is not known if the coastal quake has caused any fatalaties or injuries.