Santiago de Chile, September 18 (RHC)-- Eleven people are confirmed dead following the 8.4-magnitude earthquake that struck off the Chilean coast on Wednesday evening.  According to Chile's interior minister, the death toll continues to climb.

Jorge Burgos said that the three-minute-long quake set off tremors which were felt across South America as far as the Argentinean capital of Buenos Aires.  The natural disaster has forced the evacuation of more than one million people in the country and triggered a tsunami that swamped several coastal towns, including Tongoy, where homes and businesses were destroyed.

Tsunami warnings were issued for the Andean nation's entire Pacific coast as well as New Zealand and Japan, but have since been lifted.  Burgos’ deputy Mahmoud Aleuy billed the quake as the sixth most powerful one in the history of Chile and the strongest to have taken place anywhere in the world so far this year.

Chilean President Michelle Bachelet has urged the people who had been evacuated to stay on high ground until authorities could evaluate the situation.