Earthquake in Murcia Leaves Casualties

At least eight people perished during an earthquake with a magnitude of 5,1 that fell upon Lorca, Murcia in Spain at 18:47 (11:47 in Ecuador). This quake can seriously affect the economy of Murcia since it depends on agriculture and cattle.

In the last years Murcia has received a large population of immigrants that labor in the agricultural sector. Galo Chiriboga, the ambassador of Ecuador in Spain, stated that so far none of the 10 thousand of Ecuadorians residing in Murcia were hurt during the natural phenomenon.

According the Unit of Seismic Registry of the Alicante University Yesterday the two quakes occurred by a horizontal slip of Lorca of some 40 and 50 kilometers located in a superficial level. Over 10,000 people were evacuated and several roads near to Murcia as well as the trains collapsed along with the phone lines.

Source: AFP-Reuters-EFE