Nicaragua expands red alert due to strong aftershocks

Nicaragua on Friday announced to extend a red alert to its entire Pacific coast due to powerful aftershocks the day after a 6.2-magnitude earthquake rattled the southeast of the city of Larreynaga in the country, an official source said. Government spokeswoman and First Lady Rosario Murillo said President Daniel Ortega ordered the measure to safeguard seaside communities from possible additional damage. Before this, Ortega also had the alert level raised from a precautionary yellow to red, after the original quake caused one death, several injuries, plus damage to some 800 homes along the coast. "By extending the red alert, (the government) is attending to the concerns of the people," Murillo said in her scheduled daily address to state media. "Since last night and dawn today, state institutions are remaining vigilant and assessing sites that suffered material damage." The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake struck at 5:27 p.m. local time, Thursday and was centered around 18 kilometers southeast of the city of Larreynaga. It had a depth of ten kilometers. Aftershocks were occurring every 30 minutes, said Murillo, citing information from the country's National Territorial Research Institute (INETER). She urged people to exercise caution. Classes were temporarily suspended in the worst-hit two departments of Managua and Leon.