At least 15 killed by massive quake

AT LEAST 15 people have died after a strong earthquake shook southern Ecuador and northern Peru, trapping others under rubble and sending rescue teams out into streets littered with debris and fallen power lines.

The US Geological Survey reported an earthquake with a magnitude of about 6.8 struck on Saturday just off the Pacific Coast, about 50 miles south of Guayaquil, Ecuador’s second-largest city.

A four-year-old girl died in Peru, while 14 others died in Ecuador, where authorities also reported that at least 126 people were injured.

Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso told reporters the earthquake had “without a doubt… generated alarm in the population”.

Mr Lasso’s office said 12 victims died in the state of El Oro and two in Azuay.