Dozens injured in M6.3 Ecuador earthquake

A shallow 6.3-magnitude earthquake left more than 30 people injured, damaged more than 800 buildings and caused widespread power cuts in the Ecuadoran port city of Esmeraldas on Friday.

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Ecuador's emergency response services report 32 injured, 179 homes destroyed and 716 homes that have been damaged in the shake, which was felt as far away as the capital Quito.

Fisherman Andres Mafare, aged 36, was walking to the port when he heard a loud crack followed by a strong earthquake that shook overhead cables.

He raced home to try to find his wife and two sons. "I ran like crazy, and when I got here saw that my house had been destroyed," he told AFP.

An AFP reporter in Esmeraldas witnessed tumbled-down walls, facades that had collapsed onto a road in a pile of debris and several cracked buildings.