6.1 earthquake hits area where Chile suffered February catastrophe; no new damage reported

Strong earthquake strikes Chile’s disaster area

SANTIAGO, Chile — A magnitude-6.1 earthquake has hit the same part of Chile that suffered a catastrophic quake in February. The new temblor has caused alarm but no reported damage or injuries.

It struck the regions of Maule, BioBio and Araucani — just where the earlier magnitude-8.8 quake caused the most damage.

The U.S. Geological Survey says the new quake struck at 3:28 a.m. (3:28 a.m. EDT; 0728 GMT) Thursday and it was centered about 22 miles (35 kilometers) south of the hard-hit regional capital of Concepcion.