Mighty quake shakes Caribbean

An earthquake measuring 7.4 on the Richter scale rocked through the Caribbean Thursday afternoon. The epicenter was off the coast of the island of Martinique and lasted approximately twenty seconds.

Despite the brevity of the quake, the tremor set off false alarms as far away as California and caused panic among some Puerto Ricans who felt the ground shake:

University student Samuel Donato told Elnuevodia.com that a building…at the University of Puerto Rico in Rio Piedras was evacuated…

“There were people with tears in their eyes and others impressed since we’ve never experienced something like this.” [ed. personal translation]

So far there are no deaths or casualties though the AFP is mentioning unconfirmed reports of collapsed buildings in Martinique's capital of Fort-de-France.

Sources (English)- BBC News, International herald Tribune, Monsters & Critics

Sources (Spanish)- ElNuevoDia.com, El Vocero de Puerto Rico

Image- BBC News