An earthquake hit El Salvador and Nicaragua just an hour after hurricane Otto made landfall along Nicaragua’s eastern coast. The US Geological Survey said the epicenter of the earthquake, which measured 7.0 on the Richter Scale, was at a depth of 20 miles beneath the Pacific Ocean. There were no reports of casualty, according to AFP.

Tremors were felt in the Nicaraguan capital of Managua and the Costa Rican capital of San Jose. Nicaragua President Daniel Ortega declared a state of emergency after the earthquake, reported Reuters. Both Nicaragua and Costa Rica were already on high alert for hurricane Otto.

Authorities had issued a tsunami alert but it was lifted within hours. However, Assistant Director of Sinapred National Disaster Prevention Agency Guillermo Gonzalez said officials will monitor the threat from hurricane Otto. Officials have asked people living along the Pacific coast of El Salvador to move at least 1 km away from the shore.

Hurricane Otto, with winds of 110 miles/hour, made landfall on Nicaragua’s Caribbean coast and brought heavy rain. The US National Hurricane Center issued flood alerts and said isolated areas across northern Costa Rica and southern Nicaragua may witness very heavy downpour. Schools have been asked to remain closed while emergency teams have been kept on stand by, reported Independent.

Thousands of people were evacuated off the Caribbean coast earlier on Wednesday, as President of Costa Rica, Luis Guillermo Solis, declared a state of emergency and urged citizens to keep vehicles off the roads. Solis also announced holidays for public officials for the next two days and requested families to remain indoors to protect themselves from the impact of Hurricane Otto. The storm is the seventh Atlantic hurricane of the season. It has already claimed three lives in Panama.