A massive earthquake of magnitude 7.8 struck Ecuador on April 16, 2016. The earthquake occurred in the early evening at 6:58 p.m. local time (23:58 UTC), and was located near the Pacific coast approximately 170 km (106 miles) west of the capital city of Quito. The earthquake occurred at a relatively shallow depth of 19.2 km (11.9 mi) and was powerful enough to cause widespread damage that resulted in the death of approximately 577 people.

These two photos provide graphic evidence of the widespread damage caused by the Ecuador earthquake.