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A beardown 6.2-magnitude earthquake struck northwest Venezuela connected Wednesday evening, rattling buildings and prompting radical to evacuate homes and offices crossed respective states and neighbouring Colombia, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).The epicentre was located astir 24 kilometres east-northeast of Mene Grande successful Zulia state, much than 600 kilometres westbound of Caracas, astatine a shallow extent of 7.8 kilometres, said the USGS. As per quality bureau AFP, the country astir Mene Grande is sparsely populated, though it remains a captious hub for Venezuela’s lipid industry.
The quake was felt successful large cities, including Caracas and Maracaibo, arsenic good arsenic crossed the borderline successful Colombia.
The Colombian Geological Survey measured the tremor astatine 6.1 and classified it arsenic a “shallow depth” event, besides experienced successful Aruba, Curacao and Bonaire, reported AFP.
People rushed into the streets arsenic the crushed shook, though nary large harm oregon casualties were instantly reported successful either country. Interior curate Diosdado Cabello said connected authorities tv the tremor was “without important structural damage,”.
Communications curate Freddy Ñáñez cited 2 smaller quakes of 3.9 and 5.4 successful Zulia and Barinas states, but did not notation the USGS reading, arsenic per quality bureau AP.The tremor struck adjacent Lake Maracaibo, a captious hub for Venezuela’s lipid industry. Although beardown earthquakes are comparatively uncommon successful the country, astir 80 per cent of Venezuelans unrecorded successful seismic zones. The past large deadly quake occurred successful 1997, erstwhile 73 radical were killed successful Cariaco, Sucre state, portion a 1976 tremor successful Caracas near astir 300 dormant and 2,000 injured, AFP recalled.State-run tv continued its programming during the quake, including a subject conception led by President Nicolás Maduro, AP reported.