Magnitude 6.4 quake hits southern Peru; near Chile border

Magnitude 6.4 quake hits southern Peru

LIMA, Peru — A magnitude-6.4 earthquake shook southern Peru near the Chilean border late Wednesday, the U.S. Geological Survey said. There were reports of toppled electricity poles in the Peruvian city of Tacna.

The USGS said the quake’s epicenter was 25 kilometers (15 miles) west of Tacna at a depth of 11 kilometers (6.8 miles). It struck at 9:42 p.m. local time.

The were no immediate reports of deaths or injuries, said Edgard Lopez, a spokesman for Peru’s Civil Defense.

But radio station RPP said the quake toppled electricity poles in Tacna and the city was without power. The station said Peru’s Geophysical Institute put the quake’s magnitude at 6.5.

On Aug. 15, 2007, a powerful earthquake killed 596 people and reduced the Peruvian town of Pisco to rubble.

Tacna is near Peru’s border with Chile, where a huge magnitude-8.8 quake hit Feb. 27, triggering a tsunami and killing 486 people. Since then the region has been shaken by dozens of smaller quakes.

The latest quake was felt in northern Chile, but there were no reports of serious damage. Chile’s National Early Warning Center said some telephone and electricity outages were reported in the port of Arica.

Dozens of people reportedly fled coastal homes in fear of a tsunami, but the navy’s Hydrographic and Oceanographic Service said none was expected.

That part of Chile is hundreds of miles north of the area hit by the February quake.

Associated Press Writer Eva Vergara in Santiago, Chile, contributed to this report.