Chile 'regrets' panic caused by mistaken tsunami warning after earthquake

Interior ministry had called for evacuation of coastal areas after a 7.1 quake in Antarctica on Saturday night

Authorities in Chile said they regretted spreading panic with a mistaken tsunami warning calling for people to get out of coastal areas following an earthquake in Antarctica.

The interior ministry said on Twitter that a tremor of magnitude 7.1 struck at 8.36 pm local time, 216 km northeast of the O'Higgins Chilean scientific base, and called for the coastal regions of Antarctica to be evacuated because of a tsunami risk.