5.4 magnitude quake jolts northern Chile

A 5.4-magnitude earthquake hot northern Chile on Friday, causing no casualties or damage so far.
The quake, which rattled the regions of Arica, Tarapaca and Antofagasta at 9:36 a.m. local time (12:36 GMT), was centered 67 km southwest of Pisagua, Taracapa, a town 1,500 km north of the capital Santiago, the National Seismological Center said. Its epicenter was registered at a depth of 65 km.
"There have been no reports of casualties, disruptions in basic services or damage to infrastructure due to this quake," the National Emergency Office of the Interior Ministry said in a statement.
The Naval Water and Oceanographic Service, meanwhile, dismissed the possibility of a tsunami, saying "the characteristics of the quake do not present the conditions necessary to generate a tsunami along Chile's coasts."
In April, a powerful 8.2-magnitude quake rumbled northern Chile, followed by another 7.9-magnitude quake two days later. The two quakes, centered in Tarapaca, claimed six lives and destroyed or damaged some 3,000 homes.
Chile's western coastline lies along the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, an area with a high incidence of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.