A magnitude-5.6 earthquake was detected Saturday near Guantanamo, Cuba, the U.S. Geological Survey reported. It sent residents fleeing into the streets but local officials reported that there had been no casualties. Several aftershocks were felt throughout the day.
According to USGS reports, the epicenter of the temblor was at a depth of 22.6 kilometers (14 miles) and at a distance of 45 kilometers (28 miles) southeast of Guantánamo. The United States operates a military base at Guantanamo, which contains a prison where 188 terrorism suspects are currently being held. A spokesman at the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay reported no damage there. “It’s all calm. There’s no damage and no victims either,” said a local government official in Guantanamo city, who asked not to be named.
State-run Radio Reloj reported from Guantanamo that the quake caused cracks in some buildings and some pieces of masonry fell. The quake, which also was felt strongly in Cuba’s second city of Santiago de Cuba, was centered 27 miles southwest of Guantanamo at a depth of 14 miles, the U.S. Geological Survey reported. “It was very big. I was at my computer and suddenly felt the strong shake and we all went into the street,” said Lisset Foster, who rents out rooms at her house in Guantanamo city. “Everyone is in the street.”
