SANTIAGO: A powerful earthquake 7.7-magnitude shook southern Chile prompting a tsunami warning on Sunday.

The quake struck about 40km (25 miles) south-west of Quellon in southern Chile at 11:22am local time (14:22 GMT) and its depth was about 34 kilometre, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said.

Chile's national emergency office has issued an alert, prompting officials to order an evacuation of coastal areas to guard against a possible tsunami. Residents of Quellon were among those heading to safe areas, according to local media.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said hazardous waves of up to 3 metre (9ft 10in) above tide level were possible on coasts located up to 1,000 km from the quake's epicentre.

Chile has a long history of deadly quakes, including 8.8 magnitude quake in 2010 off the south-central coast, which also triggered a tsunami that devastated coastal towns.

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