Major earthquake damages buildings in Zamora and Loja, is felt strongly in parts of Cuenca

The exterior of a school in Loja suffered extensive damage from Sunday  morning’s earthquake.

A 7.5 magnitude earthquake in the Peruvian Amazon early Sunday morning damaged buildings in Zamora and Loja in southern Ecuador and was felt throughout much of the country, including Cuenca.  It was the fifth strongest earthquake worldwide in 2021.

The 5:52 a.m. quake was was centered in a sparsely populated area near Condorcanqui in northern Peru, 180 miles east of Loja.

The Ecuador Emergency Operations Committee said it is collecting damage reports from Zamora Chinchipe, Loja and Azuay Provinces and the effort will continue on Monday. Dozens of houses suffered damage in Zamora and Loja, some of them destroyed. No deaths or injuries have been reported in Ecuador..

Although no significant damage to structures was reported in Cuenca, three roads were closed temporarily due to landslides, including the Pan Americana North. An abandoned house collapsed in Chordeleg, 18 miles to the east.

In Peru, 867 were left homeless by the quake as 220 homes sustained severe damage.Only five people were reported injured.