MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Buenos Aires feels strong seism in central Argentina

A strong seism followed by replicas shook Tuesday morning great extensions of central and northern Argentina causing alarm in several cities and leaving at least one person killed and tens injured.

The Richter 6,5 tremor with epicenter in the border area of Catamarca and La Rioja in northern Argentina was also felt in the capital Buenos Aires and even further south in Mar del Plata as well as in neighboring Chile and Paraguay.

In Catamarca province the several seconds seism followed by tremors fifteen minutes later caused the death of a 68 year old asthmatic woman who panicked, and several school children were hospitalized when the ceiling of one of the classrooms began collapsing. In some of the main cities of northern and central Argentina electricity failed and people spontaneously evacuated the tallest buildings.

At least eleven provinces besides Catamarca and La Rioja reported damages, Salta, Jujuy, San Juan, Tucumán, Santiago del Estero, Chaco, Santa Fe, Corrientes, Entre Ríos, Córdoba and Mendoza.

In Buenos Aires city there were reports of movements in the tallest buildings and in some suburban areas such as Belgrano and Palermo.

Described as an "earthquake", this Tuesday's seism is among the strongest ever recorded in Argentina, although less intense than the one in 1944 (Richter 7,4) which completely destroyed the city of San Juan and in 1977 (Richter 5,9 and 5,7) which swept the city of Caucete.

However according to Argentina's Seismic Prevention Office the earthquake of greatest intensity since records began occurred in October 1894 in the northeast of San Juan province and neighboring La Rioja.