Quito, May 18 (RHC-teleSUR) -- Ecuador was hit by an aftershock of 6.8 magnitude Wednesday at 2:57 a.m., striking the northern coast, near Rosa Zarate and Muisne. The new tremor was a result of the massive 7.8 magnitude earthquake that on April 16th claimed nearly 700 lives and left more than 12,000 injured, with over 24,000 buildings and homes damaged.

At a press conference early Wednesday, President Rafael Correa at the site of ECU-911 emergency center in Quito, said that aftershocks were normal for up to two months after an earthquake and called for calm. He added that there were no reports of victims or infrastructural damages or of a tsunami warning. "Our nation can go to sleep assured that everything is fine," he said.

The tremor was felt in Quito, Guayaquil and as far away as Cali and Bogota, Colombia, according to the United States Geological Survey. Sirens were heard in Quito for quite some time. Almost 10 million people were in the area of aftershock, according to the Lastquake earthquake app.