The U.S. Geological Survey reported the quake’s magnitude as 7.9, while local geologists said it was weaker.

The quake caused landslides and knocked out power. Communications were down in much of the most affected areas, so determining the extent of injuries and damage was difficult. Emergency crews were responding to reports of collapsed houses.

There was no chance of a tsunami following the quake, geologists indicated. The epicenter was located in a sparsely populated area in the Andes Mountains.

Iquique, a port city, is about 1,528 miles north of Santiago. Chile, an earthquake-prone country, is home to the largest recorded earthquake in the world, a 9.5 quake that struck in 1960, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

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