Strong 5.5 quake rattles Venezuela before dawn; people flee
Posted December 27, 2018 7:50 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
CARACAS, Venezuela — A strong earthquake has jolted Venezuelans from their sleep, forcing residents in the capital to evacuate buildings in their pyjamas before sunrise. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
The 5.5 magnitude quake struck just before 5 a.m. Thursday (1000 GMT) and was centred near the town of San Diego, 165 kilometres (100 miles) west of Caracas, the capital. It had a depth of 6 miles (10 kilometres) and was felt across seven states.
Photos on social media showed large cracks to some buildings and fallen debris from historic facades in San Diego.
The quake follows a magnitude 7.3 earthquake in August — the country’s strongest in more than a century — that rattled residents across Venezuela and was felt as far away as in neighbouring Colombia and Guyana.
The Associated Press
