© earthquake.usgs.gov
The quake woke residents in the Chilean capital, Santiago, 300 kilometers away, Reuters reported.
There had at first been a warning of a small tsunami issued by Chile's navy, but it was quickly withdrawn.
Power outages have been reported on social media.
Prelim M6.8 earthquake near the coast of Coquimbo, Chile Nov-7 07:31 UTC, updates https://t.co/YCrm7t19oV
— USGS Big Quakes (@USGSBigQuakes) November 7, 2015The quake came shortly after another one measuring 5.8 on the Richter scale.
The quakes' epicenters were 12 kilometers and 14 kilometers deep, respectively.
The earlier quake struck about 108 kilometres northeast of Coquimbo, according to the US Geological Survey.
No injury or damages have been reported so far.
Chile has a long history of major quakes, including the strongest recorded in recent history. At least 1,655 people were killed and 3,000 injured in the Great Chilean Earthquake of 1960.
A deadly 8.3-magnitude earthquake struck Chile in September, forcing over 1 million people to evacuate, triggering tsunami warnings in California and Hawaii. At least 15 people were killed.
Since I moved to the coast 9 years ago, I must have felt around 100 3 pointers, 50 4 pointers, 25 5 pointers, 10 6 pointers, 5 7 pointers, the 8.3 a couple of months ago and the 8.8 mega quake.
Chile's strict earthquake codes started early in the 20th century. That and the frequent large quakes over hundreds of years which cleared out less sturdy colonial and other structures are the reasons why Chile can have large subduction quakes with little damage or loss of life. Even the 8.8 mega earthquake which directly affected the populous central south zone of Chile would have had around 300 less deaths if it wasn't for the incompetence of the emergency authorities in putting out an official no risk of tsunami decree which led to some people actually returning to tsunami danger areas or not bothering to leave before the waves hit.
As a former resident of the US West Coast, I know the same quakes I've experienced here would cause massive destruction, many deaths and result in complete unimaginable caos up north.
Be prepared with knowledge and supplies.
Saludos