Magnitude-7.5 earthquake strikes northern Peru

An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.5 struck northern Peru early Sunday, damaging some buildings and blocking several roads with rubble. It caused part of a 16th century church in La Jalca district in the Amazon region to collapse, slightly injuring three people.

The quake occurred at 5:52 a.m. and its epicenter was in the Amazon region. The tremor was felt nearly 800 kilometers away in the capital of Lima, where some people rushed out of their homes in alarm. A church in the Loja municipality in neighboring Ecuador was also partly damaged.