A tsunami has been triggered after a magnitude-8.2 earthquake struck off the coast of Chile, with five people reported dead.
The Chilean navy says some areas in the north of the country were hit by waves 45 minutes after the quake was felt at 6.46pm (10.46pm BST) on Tuesday.
Waves measuring up to seven feet have been reported and a mass evacuation is under way.
The tsunami alert will remain in place for Chile and Peru until at least 9.30am BST, officials have said.
Chile's Interior Minister Rodrigo Penailillo said four men and one woman had died either from heart attacks or being crushed. At least three others are seriously injured.
Preventative evacuation
Politicians in Chile have ordered the "preventative evacuation" of hundreds of thousands of people from coastal areas, but this is being hampered by landslides which have blocked roads.
Chilean journalist Jorge Garreton said "Northern Chile has been expecting an earthquake. There were a number of exercises in the recent past. People know where they have to go to the safety zones.
"The northern cities are low-lying so they have to go up to the mountains. They have been advised not to take vehicles but to walk."
The huge tremor occurred 99km northwest of the mining town of Iquique.
Inmates escape
Several fires have broken out in Iquique, while 300 inmates have escaped from a women's prison amid the chaos.
Thousands of homes have lost power and the government is sending in troops to prevent looting.
Mr Penailillo added: "We have taken action to ensure public order in the case of Iquique, where we've had a massive escape of more than 300 female prisoners from the Iquique jail, so that the armed forces and police can coordinate and provide tranquillity and security to the residents."
The tsunami warning initially placed the entire Pacific Coast of Latin America on alert but has now been downgraded to just Chile and Peru.
"An earthquake of this size has the potential to generate a destructive tsunami that can strike coastlines near the epicenter within minutes and more distant coastlines within hours," the US Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) said.
The quake happened just 20.1 km below the seabed - making it feel even more powerful.
The tremor shook buildings in parts of the nearby nations of Bolivia and Peru.
At least eight strong aftershocks followed in the first few hours, including a 6.2 tremor.
More aftershocks and even a larger quake could not be ruled out, according to seismologist Mario Pardo at the University of Chile.
The area has been rocked by several quakes in the last two weeks. A magnitude-6.7 quake on March 16 prompted more than 100,000 people to briefly evacuate low-lying areas.
US safe
US officials say there is no imminent threat of a tsunami along the coasts of Hawaii, Alaska, California, Oregon or Washington.
A 8.8-magnitude quake caused a tsunami that killed more than 500 people in Chile in February 2010.
