The western coast of Nicaragua was hit by a magnitude 6.9 earthquake, the European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) said Thursday.
The quake was at a depth of 5 kilometers (3 miles), the EMSC said.
The quake hit at 1:42 a.m. (7:42 a.m. GMT) at a depth of 25.3 kilometers, with the epicenter located about 38 miles from the coastline, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).
No tsunami warning was issued after the quake, the U.S. tsunami warning system said.
Other strong earthquakes shook the country’s capital Managua and other cities in the Pacific zone in January. Although in Managua people had left their homes and workers had left government buildings and the international airport was evacuated, there were no victims or damage. Also three strong quakes on the country’s Pacific coast last November.
Temblors are common in Nicaragua. In 1972, one of the deadliest quakes to hit the country claimed at least 10,000 lives.
The entire west coast of the American continent is part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, where many earthquakes occur.
