President Rafael Correa of Ecuador declared a national emergency and cut short a trip to the Vatican to coordinate rescue efforts following a powerful earthquake that killed at least 77 people, injured hundreds more, ravaged coastal towns and sent residents fleeing for higher ground in Ecuador on Saturday night, the BBC reported.

“Everything can be rebuilt, but lost lives cannot be recovered, and that’s what hurts the most,” he told Ecuador’s state television channel from Rome. “The material part is the least important, what is fundamental is guaranteeing human life.”

Parts of the capital were without power or telephone service for several hours, though the city government said that services were quickly restored and that there were no reports of casualties in the city.

The government described it as the worst quake in the country since 1979, when 600 people were killed and 20,000 injured, according to the United States Geological Survey.

Source ; MENA