Earthquake Magnitude 5.2 Reported in Guayas Province, Ecuador

The Geophysical Institute of the National Polytechnic School of Ecuador reported Saturday the occurrence of an earthquake of magnitude 5.2, whose epicenter was located about 10 kilometers west of downtown Guayaquil, located in the coastal province of Guayas, southwest of the country.

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According to the entity, the telluric movement occurred at 02H39 (local time), at 2.17 degrees south latitude and 79.99 degrees west longitude, its depth was 35.70 kilometers, and everything seems to indicate that it presented a transcurrent focal mechanism (FMNEAR Method).

"This mechanism, together with the depth, indicates that the event is related to a fracture in the subducting oceanic plate under the continent", explained the entity.

In this regard, the Geophysical Institute, together with the National Risk Management Service, said that in addition to the epicenter region, the tremor was felt in other locations of Guayas, as well as in the provinces of Chimborazo, Cañar, Bolivar and Azuay.

Reports indicate that the earthquake was felt mildly to moderately and so far no damage has been reported, although the possibility of aftershocks in the coming hours is not ruled out.

Ecuador is located in the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, where some of the most important tectonic plate subsidence zones in the world are located, so seismic activity is very active.

One of the most destructive earthquakes that have affected that country occurred on April 16, 2016, in the provinces of Manabí, Pichincha and Esmeraldas, on the border with Colombia, and left more than 670 people dead, thousands affected and substantial material losses.