SAN JUAN, Jan 11 (NNN-Xinhua) — A 5.2-magnitude earthquake hit Puerto Rico on Friday afternoon, as the Caribbean island is recovering from temblors that occurred earlier this week.
The earthquake happened at 5:26 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (2226 GMT), with its epicenter around 4 km south of Indios on the island’s southern coast, according to the U.S. Geological Service (USGS).
There are no immediate reports of damages or casualties as local media said aftershocks continue to be felt across most of the island.
US President Donald Trump signed an emergency declaration for Puerto Rico after a 6.4-magnitude earthquake and a number of aftershocks rocked the US territory on Tuesday, killing one person and injuring nine others.
The earthquakes also caused damage to buildings and cut electricity to the island.
The White House said Friday that the president had spoken by telephone with Senator Rick Scott of Florida, Governor Wanda Vazquez Garced of Puerto Rico, and Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico Jenniffer Gonzalez about the island’s response and recovery efforts to recent earthquakes.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) tweeted on Friday that the agency is working with local authorities to conduct joint damage assessment, deliver food, water and supplies to affected areas, and provide search, rescue and incident response teams.
The US Army Corps of Engineers is responding to the Puerto Rico earthquakes under several FEMA mission assignments, according to a tweet by the Pentagon agency.
Over the past several weeks, hundreds of earthquakes, many of which were weak and could not be felt, have occurred in the area, reported the USGS.
Puerto Rico, with a population of 3.4 million, is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeast Caribbean Sea, approximately 1,600 km southeast of Miami, Florida. — NNN-XINHUA
