El Salvador: Earthquake rocks supermarket in Ilopango
Footage has shown the moment a powerful earthquake rocked a supermarket in El Salvador.
Shoppers can be seen huddling together in one video, while other images show buildings falling apart.
In El Salvador’s capital on Tuesday (July 18), residents ran into the streets as the ground shook, but there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
When a radio station opened its phone lines to residents around the country, there was also no immediate report of victims.
The earthquake caused damage to buildings, roads and bridges in El Salvador. Power outages and water cuts were also reported.
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The US Geological Survey reported the epicentre was 27 miles south of Intipuca, El Salvador at a depth of 43 miles.
That point is outside the Gulf of Fonseca where Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua all share coastline.
The government of El Salvador has declared a state of emergency and has asked the population to stay in their homes. It has also sent rescue teams to the areas most affected by the earthquake.
In the country's Legislative Assembly, lawmakers fled their desks to get out of the building, before returning a short time later to resume the session.
Power flashes caused by the recent #ElSalvador #earthquake ？？？？？？
Via @croniosv pic.twitter.com/0ID7i9G6yc
— Volcaholic ？？？？？？？？？？？？ ？？？？？？？？？？？？ ？？？？？？ (@volcaholic1) July 19, 2023
Power flashes caused by the recent #ElSalvador #earthquake ？？？？？？
Via @croniosv pic.twitter.com/0ID7i9G6yc
— Volcaholic ？？？？？？？？？？？？ ？？？？？？？？？？？？ ？？？？？？ (@volcaholic1) July 19, 2023
Power flashes caused by the recent #ElSalvador #earthquake ？？？？？？
Via @croniosv pic.twitter.com/0ID7i9G6yc
— Volcaholic ？？？？？？？？？？？？ ？？？？？？？？？？？？ ？？？？？？ (@volcaholic1) July 19, 2023
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The country is located in an active seismic zone and has been hit by devastating earthquakes in the past. A 2001 earthquake left more than 1,000 dead and 8,000 injured.
The government of El Salvador has taken steps to improve disaster preparedness, but the country is still at risk.
The country's Environment Ministry advised that there was no threat of a tsunami.
The earthquake also affected several other countries, while aftershocks were felt miles away from the original disaster.
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"We continue to monitor seismic activity, other earthquakes, which are of lesser magnitude, have already been recorded, we must keep an eye on the official information and take the necessary precautions," said Environment Minister Fernando Lopez, through his profile on Twitter.
In Nicaragua, the quake was felt strongly in the capital and all along the Pacific coast.
Nicaragua Vice President and first lady Rosario Murillo said there were no reported victims immediately in that country.
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