Major 7.0 magnitude earthquake strikes near Chilean Antarctica base; officials issue tsunami warning

Santiago: A 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Saturday off the coast of Antarctica, with authorities issuing a tsunami warning for Chile’s Eduardo Frei base on the frigid continent, emergency officials said. The quake struck at 8:36 pm (2336 GMT) about 210 kilometres (130 miles) east of the base at a depth of 10 kilometres (6 miles), Chile’s National Emergency Office (Onemi) said, urging evacuation from “the beach area of the Antarctic” ahead of a possible tsunami. The Chilean Air Force’s base is the country’s largest in Antarctica and includes a village, hospital, school, bank, post office and chapel. The maximum population in summer is 150 people, and the average population in winter is 80. An unrelated 5.9-magnitude earthquake struck near Santiago on Saturday night, but Onemi said no significant damage or impact was reported. Chile is one of the most seismically active countries in the world. An 8.8-magniture temblor in the city of Concepcion on February 27, 2010 left more than 500 dead. The country suffered the most powerful earthquake ever recorded 60 years ago – measuring 9.6 magnitude – in the city of Valdivia.