A strong 8.2 earthquake hit northern Chile at 20:46 and generated a tsunami that triggered the alarms across the country as this video shows:
The epicenter was located 89kms Southeast of Cuya, in front of Tarapaca's coast.
Mapa: Epicentro del terremoto magnitud 8.2 en el norte de Chile pic.twitter.com/dENbEwaeoS
— Breaking News Chile (@BreakingNewsChi) April 2, 2014
Map: Epicenter of the 8.2 magnitude earthquake in Northern Chile
The government asked for an immediate evacuation of the entire coastline as the first waves hit Iquique.
In this Storify collection by Nacion.cl, there are several pictures of people moving to higher ground and some damages caused by the earthquake.
Some Twitter users shared important information, including the government's Emergency National Office (ONEMI):
Durante una Alerta de Tsunami realiza la evacuación a pie y dirígete al punto de encuentro más cercano.
— onemichile (@onemichile) April 2, 2014
During a Tsunami Alert, evacuate by foot and go the nearest meeting point.
— Verónica Rivera E. (@Vero_Animalista) April 2, 2014
Don't forget your pets, they should be evacuated with you. Please #AlertaTsunami #Tsunami #Terremoto [earthquake] #Iquique #Arica
Others compared the government's response to the one during a major earthquake in 2010:
Aprendieron de sus errores: alerta de tsunami, evacuacion y milicos a las calles. Al fin se pusieron los pantalones
— Hugo Alcivar (@hugoalc) April 2, 2014
They learned from their mistakes: tsunami alert, evacuation and the army to the streets. Finally, they put their pants on.
This is a developing story, watch this space for more details.