330 Killed in Peruvian Quake

Coastal areas devastated by powerful earthquake
By Jason Farago,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 16, 2007 4:59 AM CDT
330 Killed in Peruvian Quake
A man walks by a wall that colapsed after an earthquake hit the area in Lima Wednesday Aug. 15, 2007. A powerful 7.9-magnitude earthquake shook Peru's coast near the capital on Wednesday, toppling buildings, setting off landslides and killing at least 17 people when a church collapsed in a southern...   (Associated Press)

The death toll has reached at least 330, with hundreds injured, in a powerful earthquake that jolted the coast of Peru last night, the BBC reports. While buildings in LIma, 90 miles away, were rattled by the 7.9 shaker, most of the casualties were in the province of Ica, where buildings were flattened and power disrupted.

Many of the dead and injured in Ica were said to have been celebrating mass when the church they were in collapsed. As rescue efforts continue, fears turned to a possible tsunami triggered by the earthquake and its nine aftershocks. An alert was issued, then  lifted. (More Peru stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X