In pictures: Earthquake strikes off Chile coast

A group of people prepares for a possible evacuation to higher zones of the city of Iquiqu after a Tsunami alert following a 8.2 Richter scale earthquake in the Pacific Ocean off Iquique, northern Chile, 01 April 2014. Alex Valdes / EPA

An elderly person is evacuated from a shelter after a tsunami alarm at Antofagasta city, north of Santiago on the southern Pacific coast, April 1, 2014. A major earthquake of magnitude 8.2 struck off the coast of Chile on Tuesday, triggering a tsunami that hit the northern part of the country. The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake was shallow at 12.5 miles below the seabed and struck about 100 km northwest of the mining port of Iquique near the Peruvian border. Reuters

An elderly person is evacuated from a shelter after a tsunami alarm at Antofagasta city, north of Santiago on the southern Pacific coast, April 1, 2014. A major earthquake of magnitude 8.2 struck off the coast of Chile on Tuesday, triggering a tsunami that hit the northern part of the country. The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake was shallow at 12.5 miles below the seabed and struck about 100 km northwest of the mining port of Iquique near the Peruvian border. Reuters

Locals gather on the street following a tsunami alert after a powerful 8.0-magnitude earthquake struck off Chile’s Pacific coast on April 1, 2014 in Antofagasta. A tsunami warning has been issued for Chile, Peru and Ecuador, US officials said. The quake struck at a depth of 10 kilometers (six miles), 83 kilometers from Iquique on Chile’s northern coast, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said. Francesco Degasperi / AFP

Firefighters try to extinguish a fire on a restaurant by the sea shore after a powerful 8.0-magnitude earthquake hit off Chile’s Pacific coast, on April 1, 2014 in Iquique. A tsunami warning has been issued for Chile, Peru and Ecuador, US officials said. The quake struck at a depth of 10 kilometers (six miles), 83 kilometers from Iquique on Chile’s northern coast, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said. Aldo Solimano / AFP

People are evacuated from their shelter after a tsunami alarm at Antofagasta city, north of Santiago on the southern Pacific coast, April 1, 2014. A major earthquake of magnitude 8.2 struck off the coast of Chile on Tuesday, triggering a tsunami that hit the northern part of the country. The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake was shallow at 12.5 miles below the seabed and struck about 100 km northwest of the mining port of Iquique near the Peruvian border. 2014. Reuters

A powerful magnitude-8.2 earthquake struck off northern Chile on Tuesday night, setting off a small tsunami that forced evacuations along the country’s entire Pacific coast. Five people were crushed to death or suffered fatal heart attacks, the interior minister said, but Chile apparently escaped major damage or serious casualties.