At least 10 people have been killed after a magnitude 5.2 earthquake toppled several buildings in southern Spain near the town of Lorca.
The BBC said the quake struck at a depth of just 1km, some 120km southwest of the popular tourist resort of Alicante.
It came almost two hours after a 4.4 magnitude quake had already caused considerable damage and forced many people out of their homes into the city’s streets.
Cars were crushed under tonnes of rubble. Many older buildings were badly damaged.
More than 300 troops and extra police with search and rescue teams have been drafted into the city,
Spanish TV captured dramatic images of a church bell tower crashing and narrowly missing a cameraman filming the quake damage.
“The whole of the centre of Lorca has been seriously damaged,” a delegate from the regional government of Murcia told national radio.
“There are thousands of very disorientated people.”
