Natural disasters

Huge 7.5-Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Border with Peru and Ecuador

A massive earthquake has rocked Ecuador at the border with Peru, reported the BNT. 

The quake, initially measured magnitude 7.7 but no scaled down to magnitude 7.5, has been felt in both countries and parts of Colombia.

It happened around 224km (140 miles) east-southeast of Ambato, Ecuador, the United States Geological Survey says.

No tsunami warnings are in place.

Magnitude 5.5 Earthquake Hits Venezuela

A magnitude 5.5 earthquake shook Venezuela on Thursday, according to the United States Geological Survey.

The quake was recorded shortly before 5 a.m. about 2 miles northeast of San Diego, Venezuela, and had a depth of about 6 miles, according to the USGS.

The agency first reported the magnitude of the quake as 5.6, but later adjusted the magnitude to 5.5.

More than 700 Injured in the Powerful Earthquake in Iran

The number of people injured in a 6.4-magnitude earthquake that struck western Iran near the border with Iraq has risen to more than 700, state media report, quotes Radio Free Europe. 

No fatalities were reported yet from the November 25 quake, which occurred in the same area where a quake a year earlier killed more than 600 and injured more than 9,000 others.

INFP's Ionescu says 5.8-Richter-scale-degree earthquake is part of Vrancea's seismic activity; aftershocks not expected

The earthquake registering a 5.8-degree magnitude on the Richter scale, which occurred on Sunday morning is part of the normal seismic activity of the Vrancea area and aftershocks are not expected to occur, Director General of the National Institute of Earth Physics Research and Development (INFP) Constantin Ionescu told AGERPRES on Sunday.

UN: Cost of Climate-linked Disasters Soars

The economic cost of climate-related disasters hit $2.25 trillion over the last two decades, an increase of more than 150 percent compared to the previous 20 years, the UN said Wednesday, reports AFP. 

The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) noted that "climate change is increasing the frequency and severity of extreme weather events" such as floods and storms.

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