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Strong 6.8-magnitude earthquake hits southeast Cuba

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Credit: Radio Granma Manzanillo

A strong 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck southeast Cuba on Sunday, causing damage and landslides in towns near the epicenter, according to residents and local officials. No tsunami warnings were issued.

The earthquake, which struck at 11:49 a.m. local time, was centered in the ocean about 25 miles (40 km) south of Bartolomé Masó, a town in Granma Province, or 27 miles (43 km) southeast of Pilón.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said the earthquake had a magnitude of 6.8 and struck just 9 miles (14 kilometers) below the ocean floor. It followed a 5.9-magnitude earthquake exactly one hour earlier.

Photos and videos shared by residents showed damaged buildings in towns near the epicenter, including in Pilón, but the extent of the damage was not yet clear. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

“There have been landslides, damage to homes and power lines,” Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez said in a statement. “We ask the population in these areas to go outside and stay in open spaces.”

Díaz-Canel added: “We are starting to assess the damage in order to begin recovery. The first and most important thing is to save lives.”

Computer models from the USGS estimate that up to 8.1 million people may have felt the earthquake, including 711,000 people who could have felt “strong” to “very strong” shaking. It said some casualties were possible.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said there was no significant tsunami threat from the earthquake, though it noted a “very small possibility” of tsunami waves along coasts closest to the epicenter. No tsunami warnings were issued.

Sunday’s quake was the strongest to hit the Caribbean since August 2021, when a 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck Haiti, killing more than 2,000 people. It’s also the strongest quake near Cuba since a 7.7 near Jamaica in 2020.

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