The death toll from a 7.8-magnitude earthquake in Ecuador, one of the strongest in the South American country in decades, has risen to at least 246, the president’s office said.
President Rafael Correa cut short a trip to Rome, for a conference at the Vatican, to return home. At least 2,527 were injured, the president’s office said on its Twitter feed.
“Be strong,” Vice President Jorge Glas said at a press conference. “We will recover from this. These are very hard times.”
The nation’s geophysical institute said on its web page the quake was centered in the Manabi province, about 106 miles west-northwest of the capital, Quito. The institute reported “considerable damage” and said more than 36 aftershocks, one measuring 5 on the Richter scale, had followed.
10,000 Troops
The government sent 10,000 troops and 4,600 police officers to the region for search and rescue operations, Glas said on Twitter. The nation’s risk management agency said that 10,000 bottles of water would be shipped to some of the affected areas in the Manabi province, along with 7,668 sleeping kits and food for 3,000.
As of 11 a.m., just 4.3 percent of Manabi had electricity, the agency said in a statement sent by the nation’s communications secretariat. Classes in schools were suspended until further notice.
Ecuador, an OPEC member country, produced 547,000 barrels of crude per day in March, according to data from the Vienna- based organization. The South American nation hosted a meeting of Latin American oil producers earlier this month before OPEC’s meeting this weekend in Doha.
State oil company PetroEcuador said Sunday that it was slowly restarting operations after making initial safety inspections. The company said that while the La Libertad and Shushufindi refineries were working normally, installations in the Esmeraldas refinery were still being evaluated. The country’s oil ministry had reported earlier that there was no damage to “strategic” infrastructure projects, although some operations were suspended for safety.
Mexico, Venezuela
Offers of help flooded in from around the world. Ecuador is awaiting aid from Mexico and Venezuela, Vice President Glas said earlier. Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said on Twitter that 24 rescue experts were headed to help.
As houses in Quito shook and power went off briefly, residents evacuated and stood outside while waiting for the temblor, which lasted about three minutes, to stop. Some coastal towns were devastated by the quake, the government said, with victims still stuck in collapsed homes and buildings. Roads and bridges were also affected, complicating access to the hardest hit areas.
“This is a very painful test but we will make it,” Correa said in an interview with the nation’s public broadcaster. “Calm, energy, organization. A big hug to families that have lost their beloved ones.”
$300 Million
Ecuador’s Finance Ministry has $300 million in emergency funds and will also use contingent financing to help pay for reconstruction, the government said in a statement published in the president’s official gazette.
In an earlier Twitter posting before returning from Rome, Correa said the government was ready to use emergency credit lines with multilateral lenders. “The damage is severe,” Correa said. “This was one of the strongest quakes in decades.”
