Two fatalities and 2,600 houses leveled by the earthquake in Chile

TOCOPILLA.- At 12:47pm, Tocopilla was brought to the ground.

An earthquake that registered 7.7 on the Richter scale, with an epicenter 35 kilometers to the east of the city, hit homes and buildings in the Northern port with unusual strength.

Two women were killed, 2,600 houses were leveled, and 4 thousand people were left injured by the violent earthquake.

The women who where killed in Tocopilla were identified as Eleontina de las Mercedes Espejo (88), who was crushed by a wall, and Olga Petronila Ortiz (54), who was also caught in a collapse while trying to flee.

The towns of María Elena and Quillagua, close to the epicenter, which registered a depth of 59 kilometers, were also affected.

The Government last night declared Tocopilla, María Elena and Quillagua disaster zones.

The supply of basic services was interrupted for a large part of the day and landline telephones as well as cell phones were disconnected.

The same was true for electricity.

Airports in the I and II Regions are operating.

* Advise: This translation is responsability of Instituto Chileno Norteamericano.