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6-magnitude aftershock rattles Puerto Rico

A bicyclist passes a house damaged by a strong earthquake Monday on the coast of Guanica, Puerto Rico. Photo by Thais Llorca/EPA-EFE
A bicyclist passes a house damaged by a strong earthquake Monday on the coast of Guanica, Puerto Rico. Photo by Thais Llorca/EPA-EFE

Jan. 11 (UPI) -- A magnitude-6 aftershock rattled Puerto Rico on Saturday morning, days after temblors caused widespread damage and power outages on the island, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

The earthquake was one of dozens to shake the U.S. territory this week, beginning with a 5.8-magnitude earthquake Monday and a stronger 6.4-magnitude one Tuesday.

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The epicenter of Saturday's earthquake was located about 8.7 miles north of Indios and 15.6 miles northeast of Ponce. It had a depth of about 6 miles.

The week's temblors left at least one person dead and caused damage to roads, bridges and power plants. A school in Agripina Seda collapsed and an iconic natural stone formation arch in Guayanilla known as Punta Ventana, or Window Point, fell.

About 20 percent of the island's population was without electricity Friday after damage to a power plant. The Costa Sur power plant in Guayanilla, which was near the epicenter of the largest quake, could be offline for up to a year, Jose Ortiz of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority said. Other plants in the U.S. commonwealth will need to operate at full capacity to meet the island's electrical demand.

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U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar declared a public health emergency Thursday, making services available to Medicare, Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program recipients.

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