Strong earthquake strikes off Peru

An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.4 has struck off the coast of Peru but Peruvian authorities say there is no risk of a tsunami and no immediate damage.

The quake, which was initially measured by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center at 6.3, was 44 km deep and centred 194 km southwest of Puquio, Peru, the USGS said.

The quake was felt in Peru's second largest city of Arequipa and in northern Chile, local media reported.

Mining company Southern Copper had no reports of damage at its two mines in southern Peru, company spokesman Guillermo Vildalon said.

Arequipa region's President Yamila Osorio said on Twitter that authorities were monitoring rocks that had fallen on local roads.

Though the earthquake appeared not to have caused injuries, residents of small towns like Caraveli were startled and ran out of their homes, Caraveli mayor Santiago Neyra told local radio station RPP.

Earlier on Monday a magnitude 7.8 magnitude earthquake off Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula triggered a tsunami warning but the threat soon passed, the US Geological Survey and US Pacific Tsunami Center said.