29 May 2009

7.1 magnitude quake off Honduras

6:02 am on 29 May 2009

The death toll is expected to rise in Honduras after a 7.1 magnitude earthquake on Thursday.

At least four people are known to be dead.

The quake briefly sparked a tsunami alert for the Caribbean coast of Central America.

Four of the dead were children, aged between 3 and 15 years, who died when their houses collapsed.

The earthquake struck at 2:24am local time (0824 GMT) offshore near the Honduran Caribbean resort island of Roatan. It was centred 64km northeast of the island, at a depth of 10km.

Honduras has a small tourist industry with most visitors attracted to its Bay islands off the world's second-largest coral reef.